Raised on a large multigenerational farm in middle of the Texas Panhandle, halfway between Dimmitt and Hereford.
Independent Baptist, do not belong to any one church family, choosing, rather, to attend services of brother pastors on a random, rotating basis.
Texas Tech University College Prep-High School correspondence program. Amarillo College Computer Science. West Texas State University Computer Science with Engineering Math & Military Science minors. Liberty University Christian Studies correspondence program. WTAMU continuation of WTSU degree program, post Desert Storm. Embry-Riddle Information Assurance and Global Intelligence & Security Studies programs. Also attended many military and IT professional development courses and programs, hold numerous professional IT certs.
Ft. Benning, Jan ’81 for Basic/AIT as 11B Infantry. Moved to Canyon TX to attend the WTSU ROTC program, where commissioned early under the Prior Service Program. Military career spanned 3 decades, AD Army, Active Guard and Reserve, Texas Army National Guard, Texas Inactive Guard, US Army Reserve, US Army Ready Reserve, and a brief stint as Civilian Contractor. Duty was all Combat Arms: Infantry 11B30 enlisted, then Infantry 11A Commissioned, with a later detailing of 35A Military Intelligence…holding, at various times, TS/SCI status.
Being raised on a large working family farm, our ’employment’ began early, in all aspects of farm operations. Enlisted in Army the year after High School. Started a part-time general contractor business while attending WTSU, eventually evolving into an IT consultancy that continued throughout Army career on into present day. After the Army, held numerous corporate level positions in the IT field: a Regional Network Admin for The State of Texas; Production Manager for a local computer store/OEM manufacturer; Sr. Field Technician for a multi-national feeding supplements company; Network Engineer-IT Infrastructure/Sr. Network Admin for the largest privately held cattle/pork feeding operation in the U.S. Post corporate world, 2017, continued IT support for a dozen or so of long-time clients, and took on new contracts with a handful of fracking startups, developing remote COMMs networks, until mid-2020. Now, semi/quasi-retired, I am working on a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) passion project, and seriously contemplating returning to academia for a DSc in Advanced Information Assurance/CyberSec.
Things I enjoy which enrich and give meaning to living: grandchildren, teaching/mentoring young people, reading/writing/creating art, learning new things, gardening, cooking, physical fitness, mountain biking, competitive marksmanship, and flinging an eager small aircraft “across the windswept heights…above sun-split clouds…where I can put out my hand…