Dennis and Carol Preston are an inspiring couple who share a passion for words, food, travel, politics, and each other. Dennis is a sociolinguist who studies how language is used by different social groups. He is Regents Professor at Oklahoma State University and University Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Michigan State University. Carol, now retired after a career teaching English as a second language, is his chief editor and travels with him on many guest lectures around the world.
Of all the words in the world, we wanted to know which one was his favorite. “My favorite word is the Spanish word for meatballs: albóndigas. It just sounds like a meatball. Other words don’t sound like what they describe, but albóndigas sounds right.”
Words Brought Them Together
Dennis was administering a new adult basic education program through the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and was looking for an expert who could help fill some holes in the curriculum. He called a colleague at Georgetown University, who said, “Boy, are you in luck!” He was referring to Carol, who had just completed an MAT program in teaching English as a second language or dialect. Carol, who had an undergraduate degree in Spanish and had taught in the Milwaukee public school system, was looking for specific training in ESL and jumped at the opportunity to go to Georgetown. “I hired her and later I married her,” said Dennis. They married in January of 1974.
Love of Travel
Because Dennis regularly speaks at conferences around the world, the couple has friends from all over. Their favorite travel spot is “any place that we haven’t been yet. We like to be with local people and see how they live their lives.”
Politics
“We’re a couple of old liberals,” said Dennis. They consider themselves very political and generally agree on most issues, “although we sometimes disagree on some minor tactical differences.” The grandchildren of Eastern and Southern Europeans, their political opinions are partly informed by an immigrant working-class background. Dennis and Carol are also concerned about the “paranoid anti-government rhetoric” during the last election and “an apparent American inability to see the connection between poverty and social unrest.”
PFAW in estate plans
Dennis and Carol have been members of PFAW since 1985. Around the age of 60, they began to think about their estate plans. Although they were quite sure about leaving a planned gift to the Linguistic Society of America, they began to think about other organizations they trusted. “We started sorting through our list of good causes, and People For the American Way came right to the top. We are concerned about the way our country is drifting, and we see PFAW as one of its protectors.”
Learn More
Like the Prestons, you too can play a vital role in keeping the promise of America real for every American. To learn more about making a gift through your will or other estate plans, please call Bray Creech, Planned Giving Manager, at 800-714-7730 or go to our website: www.pfaw.aboutgiving.net.
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