Greetings - A Little About Me

First and foremost, I grew up as a child of two worlds. I was born in Europe (Germany) and was raised in the United States, not just any state though, but the Great State of Texas. That one sentence sets the stage for all that has happened in my life since. I was born in 1969 as the son of a US diplomat, so I was always surrounded by Cadillac limousines and those Cadillacs were my first introduction to General Motors and I have had a love affair with GM ever since.

In the 70’s growing up in Texas, Pontiacs and Chevy pickup trucks were just damn cool; however I was hooked on Pontiac back in Germany. We had a US Marine that was assigned as my father’s aide who had the military ship his 1967 Pontiac GTO to Germany. I was always hanging around that marine and asking questions about the car, what kind of engine, what type of transmission, etc.  He would ask my parents if it was OK to take me on rides on occasion, thinking back now, he was using me as his personal translator to pick up girls, but hey that’s OK because I got to ride in the GTO after all.

Back in the US as a teenager I use to spend summers in Florida with my cousins. Next door to them was a doctor, whose wife was trading in her 1969 Pontiac Custom-S on a new 1983 Pontiac. I wanted that car so badly, I could taste it, so I convinced my uncle to help me buy it, I used all the money I had made that summer and my uncle lent me the rest. In Florida at that time you could get a driver’s license at 14. Needless to say, when I returned to Texas, my parents were not happy with me, my uncle or the Pontiac.

I finished high school two years early and entered college at 16, Ohio State University to be exact. This wasn't the only college or university I attended, but it was my first. You never forget your first, am I right? This college choice also got me closer to the GM Mecca of Detroit.  After college I returned to Plano, Texas and immediately applied to GM’s Arlington, Texas Assembly plant. I applied on a Friday, and got a phone call for an interview the next Monday, who says GM can’t make quick decisions?

So my history with GM goes something like this:

GMAD Arlington Assembly Plant

Chevrolet-Pontiac-GM Canada (CPC)

Buick-Oldsmobile-Cadillac (BOC)

Lansing Automotive Division (LAD) Wilmington Assembly Plant

Saturn Corporation

GM Europe

Opel

GMIO