Here's a "quick" bio...
I was born in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1968 and lived on the island of Oahu until the age of 8. In the fall of 1976, my family moved to the mainland to live in California. It did not take long for dad to realize that the job market wasn't so hot, so on February 13th, 1977, my dad and I got on a Greyhound bus and went to Colorado at the invitation of my aunt (his sister) Loraine. My Dad fell in love with Colorado and decided to move the family there. I lived in Colorado for nearly ten years until enlisting in the United States Navy in July of 1986.
Education: As I mentioned above, after graduating from high school in 1986, I left for basic training with the United States Navy just 12 days after my 18th birthday. Basic training was held at the Naval Training Center in Great Lakes, Illinois, which is no longer active. I attended class A-school at the Naval Aviation Training Command in Millington, Tennessee to become an Aviation Electronics Technician (AT). While on active duty, I married my high school sweet heart, Donette, and moved her to Northern California where I was stationed. After leaving active duty, I remained in the Naval Reserves and studied as a student at a local community college located in Los Altos Hills, California from 1991 through 1993, majoring in aviation technologies, computer sciences and information systems. My goal at time was to become a professional pilot.
Military Career: I spent a total of 8 years serving my country in the United States Navy and Naval Reserves, (4 years on active duty and 4 years on active reserve duty). My rating was "Aviation Electronics Technician" (AT); responsible for the maintenance and repair of various aviation electronics equipment on board the US Navy's maritime patrol and anti-submarine aircraft, the Lockheed P-3 Orion. The equipment I maintained included various computer navigation, communication and weapons guidance systems. I was an active reservist during Desert Storm and, although I was never deployed overseas, I did participate in support operations here in the states with one of my reserve units, "VP-MAU". As a result of my service, I received a Gulf War Service Medal and in August of 1994, I was honorably discharged.
Click on this icon to view my naval career web site.
Aviation Experiences: While on active duty in the Navy, I managed to fulfilled a lifelong dream by becoming a private pilot. I trained at the Moffett Field Navy Flying Club and obtained my private pilot's certificate on May 25th, 1989. Over the years, I've taken advanced flight training and have had the opportunity to fly numerous types of aircraft which include planes as small as a Cessna 150 to a Lockheed T-33 jet trainer. My flying took place both here in the United States and while stationed overseas in places like Okinawa, Japan. As mentioned earlier, my original goal was to fly as a professional pilot, either as an instructor, corporate pilot, or for an airline, however, the job market for pilots in the mid-nineties wasn't very optimistic, so I focused on computer engineering instead. I'm still a rated pilot, but I don't get to fly as often as I used to thanks to a busy "life" schedule. Most of my flying is done with friends who own their own aircraft and who are nice enough to invite me to come along for a flight.
Click on the 747 animation to go to my personal aviation page to learn more about my flying experiences...
In my professional career, I work for a large financial transaction processing company located in the heart of the Denver Technological Center. My original title was "Senior Applications Architect", but has changed as my career has advanced. My current job title is "Senior Technical Analyst" for Product Development. Instead of writing programs and managing enterprise systems for the company, I have moved into more of a customer oriented position, helping to design and manage the development of computer programs for our government and commercial customers. I'll probably be doing some travel around the country, which will be a refreshing change of pace. 2009 is going to be an interesting year full of challenges, especially during these economic times, but I am looking forward to it.
Occupation: Senior Applications Architect/Technical Analyst
Hobbies: Flying airplanes, attending air shows and sporting events, surfing the internet, designing web sites, consulting, volunteering at our church, and helping to raise our three beautiful children.
Favorite Sports Teams:
The Denver Broncos
The Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Avalanche
The Denver Nuggets
