A Family of Service

I am a veteran of the United States Air Force and retired in 2000. I come from a family that has a tradition of military service. My father was a paratrooper with the Army during the invasion of Normandy. My brother is retired from the Marine Corps with service in Viet Nam to include two purple hearts and a bronze star for heroic achievement in Quang-Tri Province, Vietnam. All my uncles on both sides saw service in Europe and the Pacific during World War II in the Army and the Navy. I had cousins who served in the Korean War and cousins who performed duty with the Coast Guard. I had a great career with the Air Force, starting with the Air Force Intelligence Command and finishing my career with Air Force Special Operations Command. My assignments have been all over the world including Japan, England, Turkey, Korea and the Philippines. The greatest thing I liked about my service with the Air Force was the opportunity to travel to so many places and experience the cultures of so many other countries. I consider my years with the Air Force as the best years of my life.

Mabuhay

Mabuhay translates to "long live" in Tagalog, the official language of the Philippines. The Philippines is comprised of over 7,000 islands and is truly a beautiful country and a great place to retire. Life is a bit layed back compared to the United States, and each day is an adventure onto itself. The weather is a bit warm and comparable to Florida. It takes some time to get used to living in the tropics, but once you become accustomed to it, you will never want to go through another winter again. The southern islands of the Philippines, known as the Visayan Islands have an abundance of beautiful beaches with crystal clear water. My wife and I built "Sampaguita Beach Resort" back in 2002 in Marabut, Western Samar in the Philippines. It was originally just a coconut field next to the beach. The biggest problem was clearing the beach of all the rocks. It took months and was all done by hand, but once that was accomplished, the results were astounding. A private resort on a beautiful secluded beach. What more could you want?