I most admire the written works of Sir Winston Churchill and his lifetime achievements; however, I much prefer just being an observer of that great man. One of his great quotes, "Never in the field of human conflict, was so much owed, by so many, to so few." He was referring to the RAF during WWII.
Can you tell us a little about your latest book?
I was born during the Great Depression. My father solely raised my two sisters and me at an early age. Those were very tough and hectic years both economically and emotionally. At age fourteen, I dropped out of school due to an unfortunate incident the prior year and having had repeated the seventh grade.
At age seventeen, this grade-school dropout was working in a sawmill tossing lumber ends off of a conveyor belt. A theological student from the University of British Columbia attended one of our home parties. We became friends and one evening he delivered a Dutch uncle speech to me. He told me in plain English to get off of my ass and get moving in the right direction. He suggested that I take evening classes at a local high school in typing and accounting to acquire some basic skills. He also stated that I should seek an entrance position in a white-collar setting that would afford future advancements. I attempted to refute his suggestions by stating I was a failure, a dropout with no skills. He stated that I unequivocally had above average intelligence and assuredly possessing great untapped potentialities. He pointedly stated that that is your focus, not unfortunate past events. Mission accomplished – I immediately did exactly what he suggested.
I progressively worked up the vocational ladder, starting from the bottom rung. During my career, I spent nine years very successfully in the petroleum industry and was scheduled for a junior executive position in their home office. I decided to change careers and spent thirty-nine very productive years in hospital administration in California and Alaska. I was a director of several departments with staffing complements of fifty-five to seventy employees prior to my retirement.
What was the inspiration behind your book? Why did you feel a need to write it?
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