Growing up in the small town of Park Forest, Illinois, I was the oldest of five, four boys and a girl. Us first four kids were one year in age apart, forming a “gang”. Being a gang, we did almost everything together, except for sports.
As the oldest, naturally, I was first to experience everything. My parents weren’t much help with direction or explaining things. I remember the first day of High School I decided to try out for the football team since I did play some football in 8th grade. I was fitted with football gear, went to practice, and realized that practices had already been going on for a month. That endeavor lasted one day.
I wanted to play basketball in high school, but I was very small, so I joined the gymnastics team, not knowing anything about that sport. I enjoyed both gymnastics and baseball. My high school highlight was being named the scholar athletic of my senior year. Of course, it was in high school that I read about West Point, realized it was “free” and the rest is history.
Doing “new things” started with West Point, since I know nothing about the military, nor did my parents. Near the end of my five-year commitment, I was stationed at Ft Monmouth but assigned to the Pentagon, tasked with writing a position paper on how the communications centers for the Army, Navy, Air Force and JCS should be consolidated. The LTC who was also assigned did not show up for many months, so I was alone doing something I had never done before.
When I got out of the Army, I went to work in the business world. As I look back at that experience, I realized I took on job after job in areas that were new to an organization or a company. Working in “white space” was how it was referred. During this period, I spent as much time as possible with my family of four. Coaching soccer (which I never played), girls’ softball and, of course, baseball. Family was and is everything to me.
After I retired, I started helping entrepreneurs figure out how to start and run their business. Most of that ended with COVID. I continued my woodworking which I have done for the past 50 years. I enjoy seeing all the things that I have made for everyone in the family, sort of a small legacy.
Currently, I volunteer at Habitat for Humanity twice a week. Building things is my peace of mind.
- 9-11 Experience from Abroad – 2001
When 9/11 happened, I was working for British Petroleum whose headquarters was in London. In the afternoon on 9/11 I flew on a 1 ½ hour British Airline flight from London to Brussels for some business meetings. I had just gotten off the plane when I saw a news flash on the airport TV… Read more: 9-11 Experience from Abroad – 2001 - Haircut before R-Day
My parents dropped me off at the entrance to central area after a couple days drive from my home near Chicago. We stopped one day in PA to visit my Dad’s relatives and drop off my siblings. We arrived in the morning of R-Day and I didn’t see my family again until Christmas. It seems… Read more: Haircut before R-Day