About Barbara Cooley
Con-ver-gence: [kuh n-vur-juh ns] - noun
the degree or point at which lines, objects, etc., converge
                                 About Your Life & Times

Barbara Cooley founded Your Life & Times in 2008 after years of working informally in the field.  Few things are as precious – or as fleeting – as the memories and stories of our families and our lives and Your Life & Times is dedicated to preserving those treasures in all their possible forms.  Barbara operates on the premise that something, anything, is better than nothing. 
About the Ginkgo Leaf Logo

Trees have long been a symbol of family, roots, and lineage and the Ginkgo Biloba, the oldest living species of tree in the world, is often viewed as synonymous with longevity and memory.  What better image for a business devoted to preserving family history and memories than a leaf of the Ginkgo Biloba tree?



I am a former college instructor, non-profit administrator, desktop publisher, editor and published writer who has also long served as the family archivist and personal historian.  As a child I would sit rapt with attention as my grandmother would tell me stories of her past and our family history.  (Click here to listen to an excerpt of the first oral history I ever did.  It was with my grandmother in 1976.)  As a college instructor I taught communications, including active listening skills, and while working as a non-profit administrator I trained women to become peer counselors and coaches for other women who were struggling.  As a volunteer with hospice I’ve listened, affirmed, and written, designed and preserved personal histories for people reaching the end of their lives. 
© 2011 Your Life & Times. All Rights Reserved.
In the capacity of writer and family archivist and historian, I’ve helped my father write his memoirs of his experiences in World War II.  (Click here to read an excerpt from his memoirs.) I’ve also brought boxes full of unmarked photographs together with names, relationships, and surviving pieces of family history and begun organizing, digitizing, and annotating them for future generations.  I couldn’t be enjoying myself more than when I’m working on these projects for my family or for yours.

I live and work in Grand Rapids, Michigan but thanks to modern technology, I can easily work with people both near and far. 
Your Life & Times is my convergence, the point at which my “lines, objects, etc.,” – my knowledge, career experiences, and lifelong passions – join with my desire for fulfilling employment and become a true calling.
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Excerpt from Kenneth Springer's World War II memoirs