After
graduation, it was off to Union College to study
engineering. And then to the Army. I was
commissioned in the Infantry and was soon leading a
rifle platoon in the rice paddies somewhere between
Saigon and the Cambodian border. I was pretty badly
injured and was evacuated to Tripler Army Hospital
in Hawaii. When I returned to Ft. Benning, I was
still recuperating and ended up with an atypical
assignment for an Infantry Officer – working with
the computerized tests and measurement systems used
to evaluate students at the Infantry School. I
enjoyed the assignment and was learning a lot about
computers, so I extended my commitment for a year
and wound up ending my stint with the Army as a
Captain. This experience with computer systems
analysis and design allowed me to gain employment
with Honeywell Information Systems where I worked
for 14 years, moving into middle management. I left
Honeywell to broaden my experience, working for a
start-up and several smaller companies, but then
went back to the “big time”, finishing my career
working for IBM for the last 13 years, retiring in
2013.
While at
Ft. Benning, GA, part of my rehabilitation program
was running, to rebuild my stamina from the long
hospitalization. I really took to it, and gradually
built up my distance, and found that I enjoyed long
runs. I ran the Boston Marathon in ’79, ’80, and
’81. I think it took a toll on my body, and I moved
to more gentle pursuits. I purchased a sail boat, a
Pacific Seacraft 34, and spent many seasons cruising
the local waters, and sailing up to Maine.
I still
enjoy cooking, building on my summers cooking at the
Adams House and the Barnacle restaurants. My love
of classical music has led me to subscribe to the
Boston Symphony for the last 43 years. I am
President of the Board of Directors for the Boston
Artists Ensemble, a chamber music group that plays
concerts at Hamilton Hall in Salem. I am the
Webmaster for my church, and the Treasurer of the
Isaac Munroe Foundation for Children, which provides
grants to organizations that support children.
My first
marriage didn’t last much past my initial
deployment. I met my current wife, and best friend,
Joanne Ciaravella in 1980. Not ones to rush into
things, after 24 years of living together we were
married in 2010, and have been blissfully happy ever
since.