Biography
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I am divorced and the father of 3 children. I grew up in a farm community in northern South Carolina, and when I was 15, my family moved to Lexington, SC. I attended Lexington High School, taking classes that concentrated on Electrical and Electronic Engineering and math. I also played football from the third grade until I graduated high school. During my Junior and Senior years of high school, I also worked part time for an industrial electrical company. I learned a great deal about life in those years. Most teenagers my age were out having parties or working at the local grocery store or drive-thru. I, however, was working 30 or so hours a week installing electrical motors, 3 phase lighting, and 480 volt transformers.
Once I graduated from high school, my parents wanted me to go to college, of course. I decided that instead of having them pay for it, I would take care of the financial costs my own way: by joining the United States Army and utilizing the Montgomery G.I. Bill for college. I took the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) and scored in the top 5% for my class year. What this meant for me was that the recruiters were beating down my door. The U.S. Army made the best offer by laying a book down in front of me and telling me I could pick any job I wanted. I chose wireless communications, because I knew that in 1994, wireless phones, which in those days were the bag phones, were going to be around for a long time, and it was a new technology that had a lot of growing to do. I left for Basic Combat Training (BCT) on November 29th, 1994. I spent the next 10 months in BCT and Advanced Individual Training (AIT). I learned everything there is to know about wireless communications. I graduated AIT at the top of my class and was stationed with the 3rd Signal Brigade at Fort Hood, Texas.
I was injured in a training accident, and although it was not a horrible, life-changing injury, I was medically discharged against my wishes. I immediately went to work for the Department of Defense as a very part time “contractor.” I also worked full-time as a State Trooper for the state of South Carolina and a city police officer in a town just outside of Fort Hood, TX. During these times I started going to college part-time at Central Texas College and Tarleton State University. In August of 2000, I took a contract position with a new company called Verizon Wireless. I worked as a Network Analyst in their Network Operations Center (NOC) in Southlake, Texas. After 5 months I was hired permanently as a Technician in the NOC. During my time in the NOC, I worked through many hurricanes, floods, and other natural disasters, and even tracked down a man who had murdered his wife in Milwaukee, WI. After about a year and a half, I was offered a position as a Switch Technician in the Arlington, TX office. I really enjoyed working in the Switch and learned a great deal more about the wireless industry. It was during this time that downtown Fort Worth was struck by a devastating tornado. I was the only switch technician that could make it into the office due to road closures, flooding, and other dangers. I worked for over 30 hours straight, repairing damage, dispatching generators, and restoring service to Fort Worth and the surrounding area. After about 2 years in the Arlington Switch, I was contacted