I’d like to be able to start this off by telling you that I’m of Native American, Irish, German or Italian descent, but I can’t. I’m a mutt…funny thing is that I know very little about the genealogy that led to my existence. I see the commercials for the family tree and DNA testing websites and they don’t seem to interest me like they do others. Truth is: I don’t care.
The centuries of events that led to my birth in 1969 have no impact on who I am. I believe that in my heart. I am 100% a product of my environment, and I was lucky enough to have been raised in a time and place that seemingly ensured an unlimited growth potential to anyone willing to put in the work.
I was raised in the Ohio River valley, in the Appalachian foothills. My hometown literally had one traffic light. We had more grocery stores than gas stations, more bars than grocery stores and more churches than bars. I was raised by a blue collar family in a blue collar community. I was raised in a place where the teachers not only knew your name, they knew your parents, where you worked, who you were dating and whether you needed a little extra attention to grasp the lessons they were teaching. I was raised in a neighborhood where we settled things with fists if it got to that point and then picked the fallen up and brushed them off when the tussle was over.
If you notice, I never say I “grew up”. No…I was raised. There’s a difference. Any weed can grow with little to no attention at all. But, you raise a garden. You tend to a garden. You make sure the plants are getting what they need, when they need it. You ensure that there is space for each plant to reach its full potential and you take the time to notice all the little things that make your garden productive. I was raised…and it’s been said that it takes a village to raise a child. I was raised in the best village anyone could ask for, surrounded by the family, neighbors, friends, teachers, coaches and community that afforded me every opportunity to reach my potential. I’ve been around the world a dozen times and I’ve never lost sight of the importance of, or the lessons taught by the people who made me…me.
I’m a husband, a father, and most recently a Pap. I’m a provider of food and shelter for four dogs, two cats, a dozen chickens and four ducks.
I’m a retired United State Marine. The list of places I haven’t been is much shorter than the list of places I’ve been. The list of things I haven’t done is much shorter than the list of things I’ve done.
I have a BA from Marshall University. (Go HERD!) I have a Regents degree with minors in History and Integrated Science and Technology and I’m currently working five different Humanities certificates in Appalachian Culture.
I hunt, I fish and I garden. I spend a couple weeks every summer on a motorcycle riding across this great nation of ours. I’m an avid baseball and football fan.
More will surely come out as I post to this blog, but that’s the highlights. If nothing else this bio should give you an idea of from where my thoughts stem.