Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently, I am asked about my name---Vally, and whether or not it is my real, given name. The answer is yes it is! 

At some point in my childhood, realizing that I knew of no other person who shared my name---or anything close to my name---I asked my parents how, and why, they decided to give me a name most often associated with a geographical feature. 

My mother explained that he was reading a book and the book contained an endearing character named Valley. (I'm not 100% certain of how the character's name in the book was actually spelled.) She was so taken with the name that she decided right then that her next child would be named named after this book''s character.  However, she altered the traditional spelling a bit, dropping the "e", but many people, and most auto-correct systems still change my name from "Vally" to Valley Mulford.  

Later, when I was a parent myself, my wife had the idea that we should continue this naming focus and our five children therefore have geography names. They too are named after geographical features. Their names include: canyon, ridge, ravine, desert, and mesa. So, it is true that I am coming to you, dear friends, directly from the Geography Family!