As with most of us I
owe most of what I am to my parents. Dennis and Viola brought me into this
world on August 6th 1957.
In a little town called Bryan ( pop. approx. 20,000) in the state of Ohio.
My father is my greatest inspiration and my mother is responsible for my
looks. Thanks Mom! 
Both of my parent are retired and making the adjustment quite well.
However before I go any further I must show you some of father's work,
a machinist by trade he nothing less than a self made man.
A constant builder of things, he thrilled all of us as kids by building
us all kinds of toys and gadgets. As a proud grandparent he recently
built a 1/3 scale model of a 1913 Mercer Raceabout.
As shown below it is an incredible accomplishment from a man that because
of the depression and his mothers' ill health only made to the fifth grade.
He continually amazes me with his ingenuity and patience. 
I have several other pictures which you may find on a
page dedicated to my father. I
feel that I am truly blessed by being his son and although I have told
him so I am eternally grateful for his presence in my life. If you
get a chance check out his page. He has made many other things over
the years from simple toys for us kids ( oh did I mention that I have two
younger sisters, both happily married thank you) to many of his own machine
shop tools. I hope to get some pictures of these as well, so stay
tuned. My mother's greatest gift has been her patience over the years.
In spite of my dad's great accomplishments he has had his share of distastes,
like the time he ran his home made tractor into my mom's car. Needless
to say he has never lived that one down. She is a remarkable women
and for that I love her very much...
Now
you might ask why would I spend so much time on my parents? My answer
is because they have truly blessed my life and encouraged my independence.
They have through their own actions shown me the way to exploration and
enjoyment.
So
on with my personal history. 
As
young child growing up in Bryan I could be found drawing or coloring.
A trait still with me today ( see
personal art and drawings ) and I can remember more than one
occasion in school where I was accosted for it. Alas even today I am know
in the school district as the one that brings crayons and play-doe to district
meetings. Oh well I got to be me. That brings ups a go point,
I consider myself to be an eternal child. A child in a man's body,
and I am quite proud of it! My inner child brings me strength, joy
and creativity, so whenever I can I let my child play!
During
my 6th grade year we moved to a new home ( a third move from my childhood,
twice in town and once in the country) and with that came a new school
district. Oh what a move! We move from a relatively large school
to a small and arch rival school. Talk about horror stories, err
ah lets not talk about it. Rather let's talk about the good things
that happened at Montipelier. One of the greatest gift my parents
gave me was when we moved. Even though the first year at Montpelier
I was tormented I must admit I learned a great deal about liking others
for who they are. The kind of lesson that teaches you about the importance
of inner pride and self respect. I remember that time as a difficult
one, but it taught me the importance of finding friends that are good on
the inside. A lesson that I will never forget...
My
middle school and high school memories a probably like most, I do however
remember in my sophomore year really getting turned on to science and technology.
From there I went on to a local Vocational School. 
Four
County Joint Vocational School was perhaps my crowning moment of achievement.
It seems to me that FCJVS was perhaps one of my happiest school experiences.
This is perhaps what has lead me to where I am today. I currently
teach electronics at the Lenawee Vo-Tech Center in Adrian Michigan. (Shown
to the left) Not to digress any further I might add that after high
school I worked at a small company that made automotive test instruments
( Kent Moore Instruments). Later that year I joined the Ohio Air
National Guard. I just recently retired with twenty years of service
last year (1996). After Basic Training and Tech School I worked in
Television Service. After two years of struggling with that I returned
to work for Kent Moore. After being there for only about a month or two
they moved the plant to Ann Arbor. Remarkably it was one of my luckiest
experiences, I was the only one in the division to relocate. I was
the "man" for nearly a year while I was there. During that time I
developed a real love for my work and electronics in general. 
I
also learned a great deal about taking risks and it really paid off.
I met some great people and learned a lot about the value of hard work.
From their I got a job a place called Ann Arbor Terminals. A2
was an incredible place to work. At the time profits were high and
I got to play with electronics most of time. After about two years
I decided it was time to return to school and try my hand a college.
There I worked both part-time and later full-time in the Department of
Physics and Astronomy. I later became the technician responsible
for the care and upkeep of the 1 meter telescope. Much of my work
revolved around improving the electronics and bringing the overall maintenance
in line with the new electronics. 
Later
I worked for the Engineering Technology Department at the Community and
Technical College campus. Oh and by the way during this time I struggled
but managed to get my Associates degree in Electrical Engineering Technology.
From there I went out on my own and played with database programming.
Although fun and challenging I wasn't making much of a living out of it.
Then from out of blue I got a call from the personnel manager at the Vo-Tech
Center. They were looking for a person to fill out the school year
and well the rest is history. Needless to say I have been at the
Lenawee Votech Center for the last seven years ( started in late 1990)
during which time I completed my Bachelor's Degree.
Oh
and by the way throughout this brief history I have remained single.
But that doesn't mean I not looking.....