I was born in Charleston SC, and grew up on the state park in Cheraw, SC. I had 77,000 acres as a playgound and fancied myself sort of a Tom Sawyer. I went swimming everyday in the summers and played fooyball, baseball, and soccer. I graduated from Cheraw High School in 1988. The following fall I joined the United States Army and spent a brief time as a Combat Engineer.

I married an inspirational woman in 1991 and to this day it has been the greatest descision of my life. In 1992 I started working with my father-inlaw in the HVAC industry. I did this for 8 years until I became restless, and started looking for a change. In 1999 I went to work as a bartender in the uptown entertainment district of Charlotte, NC. I had a blast while it lasted, but in 2001 I found myself again looking for a change. An opportunity was quickly forthcoming as I became the manager of a used bookstore in Rock Hill, SC, The Book Rack of Rock Hill. The book business was good, and we expanded twice in the first 5 years to become the biggest new and used bookstore in the area. www.TheBestLittleBookstore.com

Reading books especially history books, has always been a passion for me. In 1992 I followed that passion and started doing Civil War Re-enacting. I co-founded the 6th Regiment SCVI the next year and was commander of that unit for 5 years. Living history is the greatest way to experience the life that our forfathers lived, and I learned to appreciate how lucky we are to live in this country.

I now have two more little inspirations (really the biggest inspirations). My son was born in 2001 followed three years later by a daughter. Together with my wife we live in Charlotte, NC.