Started amateur astronomy in 1973 in 6th grade with a 3" f/10 Edmund Scientific alt/az reflector and I joined my local astronomy club (Astronomical Society of Harrisburg).I saw Comets Kohoutek, West and Halley's which prompted my life long interest in Comet discovery, tracking and observation. My High School was fortunate to have a planetarium and I was a member of the Planetarium Assistants Club. Lastly, I earned my Astronomy Merit badge in Boy Scouts.

As an adult, I attended the U.S. Coast Guard Academy learning Celestial Navigation and using it periodically once out in the fleet. I maintained my astronomy interests throughout my Coast Guard career and joined a handful of astronomy clubs around the country along the way. I also had another crack at operating a small public Planetarium (Marie Drake Middle School) while stationed in Juneau, AK.

While a member with SAS, I've served on the Board for 5yrs as Treasurer and I've been a member of the SAS Team at the Theodor Jacobsen Observatory since 2005. In addition, I've have done outreach at the Paramount Star Party, the ex-Greenlake Star Party and elsewhere for the last 20yrs. I own a 20 acre rural property in the far SW corner of Okanogan County where I do most of my observing. I've earned AL Gold/Silver Comet Observing Awards.