One of my favorite hobbies is building scale aircraft and armor models.  I started building them in the mid 50s with my dad.  I built lost of airplanes in those early years and, once they'd reached their maximum "shelf life" they were usually blown apart with firecrackers or shot up with a B-B gun.  During my later high school years model building took a back seat to sports, girls oh, yeah, and schoolwork.  I got back into it in the 70s, building mostly armor models.  Later I switched over to aircraft mostly.  Check my modeling pages at the link below to find out more about my model building, and to see pics of see some of the models I've built. 

      My modeling page

Join The International Plastic Modeler's Society (IPMS)

In addition to building plastic scale models as a hobby, I also do a little collecting of military uniforms.  I first got interested in military uniforms, medals, etc as a kid.  When I was about 10 years old, one of my great cousins gave me his WW-I uniform and web gear.  I thought it was pretty cool and used to wear it around the house.  Another great cousin had been a Marine in WW-I and fought many of the major battles.  When he passed away, he left my his uniforms and gear as well.  Their uniforms got my interest in militaria up and I've never lost it.   

             
I'm pretty much a fall kind of guy.  With the exception of the short period approaching  Christmas and through New Years, I've always found winter to be gray and oppressive, particularly late January through the end and February; it just seems to drag on and on.  Spring weather is a bit too unpredictable and it seems to stay cool and damp much longer than I'd like.  Summer is pretty neat but the oppressive heat and humidity are a bit much and for me, Summer is just the prelude to Fall and, of course, Halloween! 

Click on the pumpkin below to go to my annual Fall season and Halloween pages.  

   My Fall and Halloween memories  

In 1995 I returned to the Pentagon (Air Staff) and back to IPMS Northern Virginia Modelers and have been with then ever since (served as Treasurer for two years).

After 2 1/2 years on the Air Staff I moved to the Joint Staff where I was the Commander of the Iraq Task Force and did another 2 1/2 years+ jousting with Saddam (on top of the four I spent at USCENTAF earlier).  I finally came to the realization that (in my personal opinion, of course) I'd wasted enough time on Saddam and the seemingly endless cycle of confrontation.  I decided to, in the words of the immortal Doc Holliday, "seek my entertainment elsewhere." 

In July of 2000 I was lucky enough to land an assignment to the Office of the Secretary of Defense working POW/MIA issues and I couldn't be happier.  The hours are definitely better.  More importantly, the mission feels much more rewarding to me.  There is still some hard work involved.  The issue is definitely fraught with political minefields and frustration but, when you're able to give a family some info on a missing loved one, you just can't beat the feeling......it overshadows just about everything else.

It looks like we're pretty much settled on northern Virginia now and I don't intend to move again.  I like what I'm doing and Hilary is settled into a good job here as a nursing superintendent.  The kids all live in the area, as does our grandson and granddaughter.  The baggage that would go with promotion to Colonel (frequent moves, political maneuvering, long hours, excessive stress, etc) just didn't seem worth it to me any more and I told the General I wasn't interested in promotion.  The flip side of that decision is, when I finish my tour at the POW/MIA office 'round about mid 2005, I'll likely have to retire.  Maybe then I'll have more time to build models (I guess there's always a silver lining there somewhere).

In October of 2004 I had the distinct honor of being recommended for membership in China Post #1of the American Legion.  China Post 1 is one of the oldest American Legion posts in the world, formed in 1919 after the "Great War" in China and was officially chartered by the American Legion in 1920.  In order to gain membership, one must normally be recommended.  I was lucky enough to be sponsored by COL (ret) Hal Fischer, a double Ace (10 kills) F-86 pilot from the Korean War, and retired LtCol Paul Mather, a friend and tireless, long-time worker in the Southeast Asia POW/MIA field.  If you'd like to know more of the history of China Post 1, click on the graphic at right.  

I had been attending the Army Chapter of the Chosin Few every year since 2000 as a part of my duties with the Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office.  I have spent each reunion interviewing veterans regarding their last recollection of where they men who are still unaccounted for.  They have been very forthcoming with their remembrances, even when painful to recall and we have put that information to good use over the years.  Between the fall of 2001 and summer of 2005, the information these veterans provided was directly responsible in the recovery of over 50 sets of remains from servicemen lost on the Chosin Reservoir battlefield. 

In May of 2006 I was granted another distinct honor when the membership  unanimously voted me an Honorary Member of the Army Chapter of the Chosin Few.  I am humbled to be in the company of such great warriors as an Honorary Member of their organization.