The Purpose For Starting This Site

Today's Featured Biography

 
William Richardson

Hello Classmates! First of all, I need to say that I am not much of a Facebook user, so I rarely reply to anything there.

I was born in Webster City, and attended Hilltop School for my elementary years. I lived in Webster City, in the same house, until I graduated from Webster City Junior College. I then went to Iowa State University for three years, graduating with a BA in Industrial Education in 1970.

Following graduation from ISU, I was facing the draft so enlisted in the Navy. I was in the Navy for a little over four years. the reason for the odd time period was because I extended my enlistment for about three months to ride the ship back to the States at the end of a deployment. I spent over three years aboard the guided missile cruiser USS Chicago (CG-11). My job there was in the supply department, receiving and issuing repair parts. I reached the rank of SK2, which means Storekeeper Second Class, (E5). I was home ported in San Diego for the time we were in the States, but I made two WESTPAC (Western Pacific) cruises, one of 8 month duration and one of 6 month duration. I also spent a year in the shipyard at Long Beach, California, while the ship was in dry dock, undergoing a major overhaul. I spent much of the deployment period on station in the combat zone in the Tonkin Gulf off the coast of Vietnam. We were part of what was known as the "Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club", with dozens of other Navy ships on station in the combat zone. Chicago's mission there was air control. We monitored friendly and enemy planes over Vietnam airspace. During a 1972 period, we were credited with destroying 15 enemy MiG aircraft. 14 of those were through guiding friendly aircraft to intercept enemy aircraft. We also downed one MiG directly with one of our missiles. I have visited many places that I would probably not have gotten to otherwise, Hawaii on multiple occasions, Guam, The Philippines, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Pakistan, Kenya, and a little island nation in the Indian Ocean named Mauritius. I have crossed the equator aboard ship on two separate occasions and have been initiated as a Trusty Shellback, in time honored sailor tradition.

Following discharge from the Navy in December 1974, I taught Jr High School Industrial Arts in Dubuque for two years. Finding that not really to my liking, I moved on from there and worked as a draftsman for two years in Cherokee. I liked the design work and decided to go back to school through the GI Bill, again to Iowa State. This time graduating with a BS Degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1982. I then accepted an engineering position with The Timken Company (maker of tapered roller bearings) at their corporate headquarters in Canton, Ohio. I worked in bearing design there for almost 20 years, then accepted an opportunity to transfer to a Timken manufacturing plant in Randleman, North Carolina. That was in 2001, and am still there, not having the sense to retire yet. (Update 3/15/2016 - I am now retired and enjoying it)

While with the company, I earned a Master's Degree in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH. I also was licensed as a Registered Professional Engineer in both Ohio and North Carolina, but I decided not to renew my license a couple of years ago, because at this stage of my career, I didn't see the benefits outweighing the annual fees and bother of the continuing education requirements.

(updated 6-15-2021)I was married for 38 years, with no children, but am now divorced, and with my partner, Denise, living in Canton, OH, and we have two adopted children, a two year old boy and a 6 year old girl. So, here I am at a ripe old grandparent age, trying to learn some parenting skills with a very active and mischievous two year old boy who is into everything constantly. It keeps me on my toes.

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