1. I’m a Deacon at Faith Tabernacle Baptist Church. My religious convictions are most important in my life.
2. I enjoy making all sorts of jams. Strawberry is the most popular and is closely followed by peach, blueberry and seedless raspberry. In addition to making jams, I learned to produce blueberry extract from my second grade classmate who owns a 40-acre blueberry farm in Bacon Hill, NY.
3. I’m not just active walking around campus! I’ve run the NYC Marathon nine times as fundraisers for Stop Cancer and Leukemia Society. In addition to running, I’ve climbed Mount Marcy 3 times.
4. After graduating from Utica College of Syracuse University with a Bachelor's of Science degree in social work, I later retired from the US Army attaining the rank of SFC. I served as recruiting support for the New York Army National Guard.
5. I served in support of two US Congressional representatives in the 20th congressional district with Congressman Chris Gibson as deputy District Director and District Office Manager in Glens Falls. Later I served with Congressman Gibson in the 19th Congressional District as District Office manager in Kingston NY.
6. My favorite cars are SAAB’s. I recently restored a 2011 SAAB 9-5 which I can often be seen driving to Siena.
7. In my spare time (for the past 50 years), I’ve dabbled in the automotive salvage recycling industry. I left the salvage industry when my truck was run over by a PeterBilt truck on the New York State Thruway.
8. I know the importance of diversity. One of my earliest experiences with racism took place in Syracuse, NY while I was employed by the Onondaga County probation department in 1975. I was conducting a presentence investigation at a home in Manliest, NY when a sheriff showed up and pulled a rifle on me and said, “There are no colored POs in this county.” Later on an Onondaga County judge made it known that the county DID employ an African American PO who was not impersonating an officer. I was then allowed to complete his investigation.
9. I attended Schuylerville Central School District. I began my formal education in a one-room schoolhouse in Wilton, NY. I excelled in NYS history participating in the Junior Historical Club called the “Yorkers” which led to my first job where I became a ranger historian in 1966 at Saratoga National Historical Park.
10. In May of 2021 I introduced to the Siena College Community a Juneteenth Celebration which brought us together as a community on June 16, 2021. This was the inaugural celebration of Juneteenth at Siena College.
