31 July 2005

After graduating from South Gate I graduated from the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT) with a BS in Aeronautics and Astronautics in
1962. I spent 2 years working for the Douglas Missiles and Space Division
in Santa Monica from 1959 to January 1961. In June 1968 I received a MS in
Aerospace Engineering from the University of Southern California (USC).
After I graduated in June 1962 I returned to Douglas and remained until my
retirement in October 2003. I worked in the areas of flight and orbit
mechanics and computer program development in those disciplines. I worked
on launch vehicles, manned and unmanned re-entry vehicles, interceptors,
radars, spacecraft and other programs for over 43 years. Douglass became 
McDonnell Douglass and then part of Boeing.

"Jan & Leroy on wedding day 1965"	" Jan & Leroy in Alaska 1999"

On 16 October 1965 I married Janette Sims in Santa Monica. She was born in
Coventry, England and immigrated to the US in 1957 with her parents and twin
sister. We moved to Huntington Beach in Mar 1970 and have lived there ever since.
We have four children, Stephanie (b. Aug 1968), William (b. Oct
1970), Julie (b. Nov 1972) and Robert (b. May 1975). All but Julie are
married. We have four grandchildren, Bill and Desiree have three, Nathan
(b. Nov 1986), Avery (b. May 2000), and Kindsey (Jan 2002). Bob and
Jennifer have Emily (b. Sept 2004).

"Leroy  May 1994"

Bill is an Electrical Engineer with a company in Calabasas, CA, Stephanie
lives in Eureka, CA and is a probation officer for Humboldt Co., Julie is a
high school math teacher in Windsor, CA and Bob works in the art department
for a commercial display company in Anaheim, CA.

In 1964 I discovered the Sierra Nevada and backpacking and with friends and
my wife backpacked the Sierra for over 25 years. With the onset of
diabetes, I stopped backpacking but still enjoy dayhiking and fly fishing in
the mountains.

We have always enjoyed traveling and camping with our family. We have
spent a month in Britain in May 2000 and a month in New Zealand in Mar 2004.
After retiring we bought a travel trailer and have traveled extensively in
the western US. We plan many more trips in the future to Canada, Alaska and
the Eastern US.

"Our family at Christmas...1996"