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Growing up on a farm in Nebraska, the nights were dark and the stars were bright. I read everything I could find on space, planets, stars, galaxies, and the universe. I bought my first telescope when I was 15 and especially loved Meteor showers. I always hoped that one day, I would get a chance to participate in space exploration.
I moved to Colorado in the summer of my 27th year, coming home to a place I'd never been before. I became a Quality Inspector for local aerospace company, and enrolled in the University of Colorado - Denver. As my education progressed, I was allowed to move into increasingly challenging positions. I now have a degree in Electrical Engineering and additional classes in Telecommunications and Math. I have worked on many space missions, including Galileo to Jupiter, Magellan to Venus, Cassini to Saturn, and Mars Observer to Mars, as well as both Atlas and Titan rockets. Several Mercury manned space flight missions were launched on Atlas rockets and all of the Gemini manned space flight missions were launched on Titans, built here in Denver.
For the past 15 years, I have worked in the Training environment, a field I enjoy immensely. I have taught NASA, Air Force, Contractors, and LMA Employees about Titan and Atlas rockets, including Launch Control Systems, Vehicle Test Language, Electrical and Avionics Systems. I have also taught Skills courses, Electronics courses, Math courses, and Telecommunications courses. I tutor math at Green Mountain High School on Thursday evenings to share the knowledge I have acquired.
For the past 15 years, my employer has sent me to elementary, middle, and high schools to represent the company and speak to kids about space exploration and working in the space industry. Being a Solar System Ambassador has allowed me to visit even more schools and touch more minds. I am now a regular guest lecturer at University of Colorado at Boulder. I am truly blessed to have a family and an employer that allow and encourage me to share my knowledge and excitement about space exploration, and our industry.
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