About Us
Joan Appel
Traveling is a passion. I came by mine at a young age when my parents would pack my sister, Sheri, and me into the back of our old Studebaker for sojourns that criss-crossed the United States. As my sister and I aged, and my parents had more time and discretionary income, their trips became more elaborate and took them to places further a field. Their stories, pictures (and the results of their shopping) nurtured the seed they had planted. I luckily married a man, Bill Reilly, who has a great sense of adventure and a passion for food and wine that rivals the one I have for travel. Thus, as a team, we set out to eat and drink our way around the world. When we began traveling we used the services of Mark Twain Travel, then owned by Bob and Gloria Baker. We used Mark Twain Travel as the Baker’s and their staff were well traveled. We liked the fact that when we spoke to them about a destination they could share information from personal experience, not from a brochure. When the Bakers opted to retire they suggested that we turn our travel avocation into a vocation. We did so in 1990. Since that time we have tried to remain true to the model they started. It is our belief that people will feel more secure, confident and at ease if they plan a trip with someone that has personal travel knowledge and experience. To this end, I would like to share Bill’s and my non North American travel resume. Each of our staff will “introduce” themselves separately and will share their own travel resumes*. Although each of us will “introduce” ourselves individually, please know that we will work together with you as a team to insure that you get the best information and assistance. We look forward to sharing our experiences and to working with you as you develop your own special travel memories.
*The Century Travel Club allows one to count as a country “visited” one that a person has “landed at or traveled through”. Neither our staff nor we include those in our resumes.
Sarah Dobrydney
My first "real" travel experience was a trip with my high school Spanish class to Spain. I fell in love with the idea of learning about cultures that are unlike our own, and the fact that many places have a history that vastly pre-dates the United States. After high school, I went onto Mansfield University to pursue a Bachelor of Music in Music Education--something I had always loved. Following my trip to Spain I had grown fond of Spanish language and culture, so I added a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish. My husband, Tom, and I went on a backpacking trip for five weeks one summer during college, which cemented our joint love for travel. We visited Ireland, and I took him to many of the places I had visited in Spain a few years earlier. I was also fortunate enough to have a study abroad opportunity in Chile, during which I lived with a Chilean family on the central coast. That experience, coupled with others in my life, changed my view on the world and I knew I would be forever hooked on travel. Upon graduating, with the prospects of finding a job in education dwindling, my husband looked at me and said, “What do you really love and want to do?” I have always had lots of interests, but every time I tried to answer this question I came back to the fact that most jobs don’t allow time to travel and really experience the world first hand. Then, the perfect opportunity presented itself at Mark Twain Travel. It has afforded me the opportunity to continue to build up my "travel resume" while helping others to expand theirs!
Lynette Saunders
Coming Soon!
Marge Dooty
Coming Soon!
