Growing Up in Oklahoma City

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

In the mean time, here is a dry and commented list of my education and employment in O.K.C. before I escaped.

Major Event: JFK Assasination

1968 to 1969 Woodson Preschool - Woodson Park Complex
SW 33rd Street & May Avenue, Oklahoma City, OK. 73109 (405) 682-0439
Socialization, recreation, and play.

This was a "school," or rather the school that all us young children went to before we went to a real school; and if we survived, then we got to go to a real school. It was conveniently located in the park. So when we were tired of playing inside, or the teachers were in need of fresh air, we could all go outside and play on the park equipment. At the end of the day, we were supposed to be tired enough that when our parents picked us up, we had no energy to give them any hassles for the rest of the day

1969 to 1972 Coolidge
5212 South Villa, Oklahoma City, Ok. 73119 (405) 685-2777
General education: language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, physical education, music, art, social behavior, habits and attitudes, work habits, and health and safety.  During my time at Coolidge, my teacher, Mary Francis Scott recognized my hypertension and helped see to my help.  I never found this out till years later (30 something).

There sure were a lot of things that we were "graded" on - a stressful life compared to the carefree playful existence in preschool. But these were not "grade cards," they were "non-graded primary reports" or "progress report cards," that reported us as unsatisfactory, satisfactory, or excellent; or they just measured our efforts and progress. Obviously, this is where we were supposed to learn the major components of society. Not only were we to learn or improve on general education subjects and language, but we had to learn or develop proper habits and attitudes (if you didn't pass, you just had a bad attitude). In 1972 , my last year at Coolidge, I played "Pee-Wee" baseball in the Coolidge Crocodiles.

Major Event: Grandma & Grandpa Holding were killed.

**** Outside Arts and Education
Kirkpatrick Science and Air Space Museum at Omniplex
Originally: 3000 Pershing Blvd., Fair Park, Oklahoma City, Ok. 73107
Now: 2100 N.E. 52nd Street, Oklahoma City, OK. 73111
General art, painting, sketching, ceramics, general science and astronomy.

This was a fun place to spend the summer. I signed up for as many classes as I could each summer and stayed until the doors closed. At the end of the summer they would have an exhibition of the work that students did. I was pleasantly surprised when someone bought one of my wood and clay sculptures. I've saved the note from the Foundation informing me that it had been sold - my first buck as an artist.

1972 - 1973 Harmony (now Martin Luther King Jr. School)
1537 NE 24th, Oklahoma City, Ok. 73111 (405) 427-7616
General education and Spanish.

The preceding summer, I stood on my home block street corner with a sign reading "honk to stop bussing." Everybody else was doing it, so I did it too; everybody else was opposed to bussing, so I was also. Nevertheless, for desegregation, I was bussed across town to school. It was also the year that I got my first actual report card, though I do not know where it is - let's assume it was good.

1973 - 1978 Wesleyan Christian School - Accelerated Christian Education (A.C.E.)
3745 SW 25th Street, Oklahoma City, Ok. 73108
General education, preaching, trumpet, and choir.

I went to Wesleyan Christian because the bussing situation had "made the local public schools unsuitable" and my parents felt that a Christian education would be more appropriate. I got involved in the school and its activities, of what there was. Since Wesleyan was part of the Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) program, there were regional and national competitions. I competed and won a small collection of ribbons in regional competitions and competed at the national level in a few areas. In music at the national level, I competed in organ competition in 1977 at Bob Jones University and in 1978 at Hyles Anderson College where I won sixth place.

Dodson's Cafeteria (s) July 1975 to June 1980
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (405) 632-2252, (405) 681-5541.  All the Dodson's have closed by the end of 2001.  The shopping center where one of the was, is now overtaken by an expanding hospital complex.

Supervisor: John Thomas and Supervisor: Mrs. Travis.
Organist, checker, cashier, pastries prep., line server, host, busboy, and dishwasher.

At the cafeteria, when I would finish my meal before my parents did, I would get permission from Mr. Dodson (who knew I played the organ) to play the cafeteria's organ till my parents were ready to leave. Later, Mr. Dodson offered to provide my meals if I would play during the meal-time crowds. This led to my part-time employment as an organist during the evening and Sunday noon meal-times (my starting wage was $1.90 per hour). It also led to full-time employment during school vacations, when I got to work a variety of positions.

1978 to 1980 Christian Heritage Academy
4400 SE 27th, Del City, Ok. 73115 (405) 672-1787
General education, typing, and German.

Christian Heritage Academy (CHA) is an independent, private Christian education school. Due to a personal conflict at Wesleyan Christian about my having joined the Masonic organization, DeMolay, I was moved to CHA in the first quarter of my eleventh grade. I was semi-comfortable about the move to a new school as well as irritated; thus, I did not strive as hard as I did earlier, but I did okay, ranking forth in a graduating class of ten.

Medical Arts Labs (MAL) June 1980 to July 1981
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (405) 278-2627

Supervisor: Jack Rushing.
Specimens and reports courier.

I was hired to MAL with a reference from Mr. Travis. I learned and worked/drove several routes, which allowed me to work considerable overtime: ten to fourteen hours a day. Over the course of the year, I was involved in three minor auto accidents. While I was on pain-killers for a gunshot wound (results from a break-in robbery) I had a fourth auto accident and had to be released.

Major Event: Shot in self-defense.
Got robbed and shot in my own apartment!  I did get in a good slug one someone's jaw before they pulled guns.

1981 to 1982 State Department of Vocational & Technical Education
4300 Lincoln Boulevard, Oklahoma City, Ok. 73105
Now under: Oklahoma State University (OSU) (405) 743-5160
Arc welding, pipe fitting, blue print reading. Completed 542 hours of training.

I did not attend college immediately after high school and it was not until I was the security post supervisor at Nicor Drilling that I decided to learn welding - to make all the big money that all the other welders were making. I completed training, became certified, and joined the local union, Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 344, but I didn't give up my day job. As soon as I joined the union, the oilfield boom went bust. So I had to remain a security guard and look for other alternatives for education and a better life. I did make some nice bar-B-ques for some friends.

Burns International Security Services, Inc. Sept. 1981 to July 1985
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (405) 848-1182

Supervisor: Jim Garrett.
General guard. Post Supervisor - Nicor Drilling Corporation (168 weekly hrs.), District Night Supervisor - Oklahoma City Operational Area (3000 weekly hrs.), Post Supervisor - Borg Warner (parent corporation, 168 weekly hrs.).

• Achievements & Experience
• Promoted to the rank of Lieutenant as a Post Supervisor within four months of employment.
• Promotion to the position of Night Supervisor for the Oklahoma City Operation Area within three years of employment.
• Made responsible for parent corporation contract (Borg Warner) and public relations as the post supervisor
• Evaluated and codified post security procedures that improved operations and client relations.

I responded to a Burn's "help wanted" newspaper advertisement and I was immediately hired. I started out as a general guard and worked a number of posts and long hours into overtime. The security industry predominately has a high turn-over in personnel; thus, it is constantly short-handed and in need of "warm bodies." I persisted in filling vacancies and working overtime where and when needed. This gave me the reputation of a "good guard." When the new contract with Nicor Drilling was opened, four months after my hire, I was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant with the position of Post Supervisor at Nicor.

My "excellent" supervision at Nicor led to my promotion to the position of Night Supervisor for the Oklahoma City Operation Area on 20 July 1984. The position had been vacant for some time and Jim Garrett, the District Supervisor, secured authority from the Tulsa Oklahoma Regional Office to promote me. This was a strenuous position that required me to work long hours, frequently days with very little sleep. I was on the verge of resigning when I was offered a "promotion" to the position of post supervisor at the company's parent corporation, Borg Warner, in Norman, Oklahoma.

Borg Warner was having problems with post supervisors, firing them every two to three months, and was very dissatisfied with the quality of service it was receiving. Borg Warner's client contact, Ray Headings, had threatened to cancel the security contract with Burns and hire Wells Fargo unless the situation improved. I rewrote and extended the vague post security procedures and improved relations. I remained there for a year till Burns, under a new manager, terminated me because I refused to fire a part-time guard - a college student that could not work during school hours. I was told my termination was due to a "reorganization in Burns." It was well rumored from the Regional office that the new manager was looking for reasons to fire key personnel so he could replace them with his friends. Ray Headings informed me that he was fully satisfied with my work and to use Borg Warner for references.

 

1982 to 1985 South Oklahoma City Community College
7777 South May Avenue, Oklahoma City, Ok. 73159 (405) 682-1611
Associate of Science - Computer Programming, 43 hours contributed to a 3.94 GPA (Degree not completed).

Major Event: Challenger Space Shuttle Explodes
January 28th, 1986, pioneers of the new frontier suffered a major accident.

• Phi theta Kappa - National Honor Fraternity (certificate).
• Massage Class (certificate).
• Cinema Theatre Pipe Organ Class (certificate).
• First Place Trophy - Intramural Weight Lifting Competition.
• Dinner Theater Play Production - Jesus Christ Superstar.
• Member of student Data Processing Management Association.

I decided to try for a higher level of education, so I enrolled in part-time college to work on an Associate Degree in Computer Programming - it seemed to be the up-and-coming thing. Working full-time as a security supervisor and on call made part-time college part-time (so I was only a quarter-time college student). It seemed like it might take more than four years to complete a two year degree. Nonetheless, I continued to push for my degree and with the encouragement from my C.A.D. teacher, I took on a programming project for a local high school - the project became a can-of-worms. After three years of struggling through college, I took an alternative to obtaining education, experience, and money for college - I joined the Navy.

Prestige Antique Galleries, Inc. & JR's Antiques July 1985 to July 1986
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (405) 681-8630

Supervisors: H. A. Miears.
Warehouse labor, loading and packing, auction set-up and break-down, truck swamper, general maintenance and antique repair.

I became aquatinted with H. A. Miears Sr. while a member of the international Fitness Center. Since he knew me from the gym and I had just became unemployed, he hired me to work for his company, where I also began working for his son, H. A. Miears Jr.. I enjoyed a considerable amount of work and travel with the Miears in the antique business until I left for the Navy.