Robert B. Peirce
In the larger picture, I am apparently embarrassing my oldest grandchild during my birthday party. Lower Left I am partying with another of my grandchildren, and at the top left, I am trying to decide on the proper footwear for a hike upriver in Zion National Park.
After leaving LAHS I enrolled at the University of Delaware in the fall of 1956. I got bitten by the athletics bug, and wound up running both cross-country and track, as well as captaining a couple of wrestling teams. Somehow, between practices, I managed to finish a degree in electrical engineering, and graduated in 1960.
I started work making soap for Proctor and Gamble near Boston, but soon left there to join New England Telephone as an engineer. They treated me pretty well, even sending me to Queens University, Canada, to further my education. All good things come to an end, however, and after 11 years I left them to work in the television industry. I became Director of Engineering for the Eastern Educational Network, and participated in the conversion of public television stations to color, as well as helping to introduce British programming to American audiences. It was fun, and heady, but it too ran out.
I went to work at Sportschannel, but only for a short year, going on to take over as Chief Engineer of a television station in Boston. Then I went to a television post production company as their VP of Engineering. It was fun, but not financially sound, so after about 6 years, the company went under. I participated in an attempt to buy up their assets, but was unsuccessful. However, the venture capital people liked our approach, so they funded our startup post production company, and made me Exec. VP. It was a great company, but fell on hard times, and we had to close it in 2004.
I retired. At least I tried, but a friend in the TV business asked me to come in and coach some of his people in new computer software. Then he succeeded in convincing me to return to the business. So now I'm back at work as an Operations Assistant, and doing the work I know and love. Someday I'll retire again!
In 1963 I married a woman I met at the telephone company, and we brought three children into the world. However, we divorced in 1975. About the same time I met Angela, and she and I have been together ever since. She brought four children with her, so now we have a large extended family. There are five spouses and seven grandchildren. Angela and I own rental properties, so I have developed some skills with house building and repair. Now our children have gathered up five more houses for us to take care of. It makes for a busy life.
I was away from athletics for a time, but one of Angela's daughters succeeded in introducing me to a bunch of new sports, and I've tended to stick with them. Right now, rock climbing is the thing I'm doing the most of, but I also enjoy long fast bicycle rides (30 to 50 miles) and have a lot of fun in a sea kayak in the ocean off of Boston. I took a memorable vacation two years ago with a four day kayak trip off of Portland, Maine among the Calendar Islands. This past summer I was able to go sailing occasionally, and I get Angela out in a canoe on the local rivers whenever I can. In June my son and I took a four day hiking and camping trip through Zion and Bryce National Parks. Now, as winter comes on, I can get back to two other sports I love; cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. Meanwhile, a friend is trying to get me to try recreational tree climbing. Life gets more exciting every day!