Throughout my life I have valued education and its opportunities. After high school, I found myself without a clear idea of what I wanted to do in life, but I did know that whatever I would finally decide it would require further education. So I attended a local junior college to pick up some general course requirements while working fulltime. I found it impossible to work fulltime with rotating shifts and have the time necessary for college classes and study.
It was at that time my Dad gave me the idea of enlisting in the Coast Guard for four-years, then return to school with the GI Bill in-hand. So I checked out the CG and signed up.
I found the fast-paced, highly technical environment of the Coast Guard a perfect place to expand my scope of knowledge. I quickly found that the CG honored those with the aptitude and willingness to improve themselves, so I took advantage of all training and educational opportunities offered.
The follow is a list of my CG training:
Most of the above courses, classes or schools where a requirement of a new position, a promotion, or taking on a new responsibility. The above list doesn't include the math and language classes I took on my own at local community colleges.
Although I had a successful career and blessed with a beautiful wife and family, I still had not achieved my basic life's goal of obtaining my bachelors degree, which I promised myself some 27 years earlier. So after retiring from the CG, my wife worked so I could attend college.
Click on the above links for information on my time at RCC (Rogue Community College) and SOU (Southern Oregon University), which I am currently attending.