From: Myra Jones Pierce

Subject: Biographical Sketch

Date: 09/23/04

This is in response to Jimmie Michie’s request that I write the initial biographical sketch after opening my big mouth and suggesting same as a Web-site addition. So here goes.

1958: Spent 6 months at home in N.N. when my father refused to fund additional MIT studies, where I worked at NASA and received my private pilot’s license. Then, on my 21^st birthday, flew to Boston where I found a lowly job as Art Clerical in a department store advertising department. Didn’t last long, as I soon married a boy I had met at MIT and moved to Columbus, Ohio where he was attending Ohio State.

1959-1961: Started work as a Junior Engineer at North American Aviation, and had a son (Ben). Then divorced Husband #1 (retaining custody of Ben), and started attending Ohio State part-time (Aeronautical Engineering again) while working full-time.

1962-1967: Married again, this time to an MIT grad working on his PhD at Ohio State. Continued full-time work and part-time school until we moved to Atlanta in ’66 when he completed his degree and received a professorship at Ga. Tech. It was then-or-never for me education-wise, so I entered Ga. Tech as a full-time student (this time in Engineering Mechanics), and received my BSc. 3 quarters later at the advanced age of 30.

1967-2002: Re-entered the workplace, where I remained until retiring in 2002. Had started programming in FORTRAN (an algebraic-notation computer language developed for engineering applications) while still in Ohio, and liked the problem-solving aspect so much that I remained in this field throughout my career. Was very fortunate to find well-paying jobs in the programmer/analyst/consultant area, the last 22 years of which were spent at GE (a great company to work for with a very generous stock and pension plan). So was able to remain technical throughout my career and avoid the politics/pitfalls of management positions.

1972-1974: Lost my brother, who was shot down over Vietnam while an Air Force navigator/electronics expert on an F-105. And divorced Husband #2.

1987-1988: Ben had two daughters, who are now teenagers.

1988-2003: Met a wonderful man (who just happened to be Jimmy Starboard’s uncle with a sister still living in N.N.), and we had a great 15-year relationship (no marriage this time) until he left us after a fall and severe head injury last year.

2004: Enrolled as a full-time student in the Interior Design program of a local technical school after previously completing 3 "distance" courses in the same area. Will not finish the program, as it requires 2 quarters of Internship (working in the field for free) and 2 of Design Studio (preparing a job-search portfolio). But enjoy the academic environment and all my 20-year-old classmates, so will continue with the classes a bit longer.

And that’s it for me. Now, how about you ??? Would love reading about your exploits these past 50 years, and am sure you can come up with a better format than mine (I just think chronologically, not topically). So let us all hear from you.