Indiana Years

I was born in Elkhart, Indiana May 11, 1957. I grew up on 45th st, actually kind of out in the country. I lived there until I graduated at Jimtown High School in May, 1975, and joined the Navy in June, 1975.

Growing up

I grew up playing in the woods across the street and collecting
Toads, Frogs, and worked my way up to Turtles. I had as many as
30+ turtles at a time some summers, and always let them go at
the end of the summer.

My parents are from the south and I sometimes say their
heritage is Depression Era Southerners. They were both very hard
workers and raised their kids to be very independent and also hard
workers. My father was a hunter and fisherman. From the
time I was very small, I have exciting memories of going through the
woods keeping up with my father and older brother as we followed
the coon dogs. I grew up with BB guns. My friends and I shot
them so much that we literally could shoot dandelion stalks from
the hip. When my Dad and brother let me shoot the treed coon
the first time with my Dad's 22, I hit it first shot. They made such
a fuss. I said come on, it is easy with a scope!! It was the first time
I used a scope, and it did seem easy.
I know it sounds cruel to shoot game, but we ate them,
(everyone asks me what coon taste like). And it is exciting
to work with the dogs.
Unfortunately these types of skills, activities, and good
dogs, will probably be extinct in our kids lifetimes. I really
have to say it is an incredible experience to watch a coon
take a 22, drop 50ft, and still give two dogs an incredible fight.
I really think you learn a lot about life standing next to that
intensity at a young age.

My Dad also was an avid fisherman. I often tell people, my
dad actually took his boat with him to work, and fished
on the way home, and this is not an exageration. He did
this at times. When I was very small we went to the
Tippicanoe River. The place we went to was so isolated
that there was no boat landing. We loaded the station
wagon and boat-on-trailer with a weekends camping/fishing
supplies. We parked next to the top of an overpass, then carried
everything down the hill to the river bank. Then removed the boat
motor, and carried it and the boat down the hill. We put the boat
in the water, then loaded it up and headed down the river to one
of my Dad's favorite spots. The fishing was so good we could
put out our trout lines, come back the next day, and they would
be full of fish that hooked them selves. We brough back as
much as we wanted most trips, and the family had fish for
dinner a lot. I recall eating at the campfire used to taste real
good for some reason. We were probably real hungry.

Eventually Tippicanoe seemed fished out somewhat, and
my Dad started floating down the St. Joe River from Mottville
to Bremen. We did the two car method. Dropped off a car down
stream, took the boat upstream, then the spare driver returned
down stream and switched cars so the boat trailer was waiting
for us. The scenery was always nice, and by this time my
Dad was not into catching tons of fish as much, but seemed
to want to catch nice fish. Most of the time he liked casting
with lures and going for Pike and Large Mouth Bass. We
occasionally got a nice one.
We also went other places over the years, and sometimes
to Lakes.

Professionally my Dad was usually a Machinist, who ran
machines and also repaired them. He seemed in demand and
sometimes switched between a couple local shops.
My Dad had built the house we lived in his self. He and I,
with help from our neighbor, also built a large garage behind
our house when I was about 16 years old. That experience
was nice for me, to see the construction from the bottom up.
I was a good ditch digger. He ran his own Auto Repair for
a while out of the garage. He also made me work with
him on cars and all projects around the house, from the time
I was very young. So I had a good mechanical background
at a young age. When I finally bought my first car at age 15
for $250, it needed a lot of work. But I kept it going.
My Dad also liked auto racing, and built a couple of Race
Cars for the local tracks. I recall going to the stock
car races many times from a very young age.
When my Dad got older, he took up Airplane Piloting.
He bought a 4 seat Cessna and was very involved in the
Mishawaka Pilot's club.

My Mom was also a hard worker who often sold Avon
products or did ironing for others, to earn extra money while
raising 5 kids.
She always drove us to any school, church, boy scouts,
sports, or job activities.
She also has always liked having a garden to grow her
own vegtables. She was always a great cook when I grew
up, and we were fed and taken care of very well.

My Mom was always loyal to the local neighborhood
church, Bethany Missionary Church, where I attended and
had many childhood and teenage freinds from the youth group.

When I used to come in the house all greasy from working
on my car, many Mom's might be angry about messing up
the bathroom sink. But my Mom always seemed happy
and proud, that I was working and learning. Actually it
was even the same as a child when I came home all muddy
from playing in the Creek in the woods.
My Mom has always liked writing. She helped me in
4th grade write play scripts. For a while she published a
newsletter called "chatterbox", that she sent to friends
and relatives.

High School period

I graduated from Jimtown High School in Elkhart Indiana in 1975.
It was a small school with 83 graduating in 1975. We all knew
each other well.

I also attended the Elkhart Area Career Center half days my
junior and senior years, where I was in the Radio and Television
Broadcasting classes, and worked at the Radio (WVPE 88.1,
first on your FM dial) and TV station.

Working as a DJ at night at the Radio Station was very good for
me. I was a middle of the roader type, and maybe a little shy.
Having to handle the 4 hour shifts were good for my speaking
and confidence, and sometimes helped with my popularity
when I met new people. (I became more cool).

The Chief Engineer at the Radio and TV station, (Klem?) may
have been one of my first Mentors. I passed my 3rd Class
FCC license in High School, and the experience with the
Engineers at EACC probably influenced me to go into the
Advanced Electronics program in the Navy.

I also had some great fun times working at the Radio Station,
and helping the Labor guys out at the TV station. One of
the labor guys hired to do chores was a guy everyone called
Cherokee, (definitely Native American).
He used to fetch me when he had seemingly impossible
cabling jobs to do. We used to look at the jobs and say to
each other how impossible it was over an over for a while.
Then gradually we climbed rafters across the Studio ceiling,
or wiggled through ceilings crawl spaces, worked fish tape,
or whatever it took, and eventually always got it done.
I never knew why he always got me to help, after all there
were others in his crew, and many other student workers.
But it somehow was flattering in a wierd way, as if he and
I were the only ones crazy enough to take it on. Some of
these jobs deserved hazardous duty pay, and he and I felt
special to do what seemed impossible and what others would
not do.

I have always felt that Jimtown and the EACC prepared me
well for life after high school.
Any old friends email and say hi.