Jerry Dunlap:  

FAITH & POLITICS CHRISTIAN Ultra-Conservative "All things are possible with GOD". Our Founding Fathers of this wonderfull Country asked for a "Separation of Church and State", NOT a separation of "GOD and Country". Their statements must be placed in the proper historical context of their time to fully understand the meaning of their words and should never be done so otherwise. The US will continue to be a great power on Earth as long as we remain focused on GOD as the foundation upon which this country was formed. PERSONAL VIEW, USA & FREEDOM: "The Freedoms that we enjoy should never be taken for granted! A great price was paid for these freedoms and will continue to require each citizen to do so in some form! Education is the "Magical Key", providing Freedom and Opportunity for All. EDUCATION & CAREER My College education is by far, the best investment that I have ever made in my Life. The returns from that investment in higher education far out weight any of those I have made in Real Estate, Mutual Funds, etc. Accepting "Life Long Learning" is an absolute necessity. Following graduation and teaching "Design Studio" at Auburn University's School of Architecture, I have been working and living in Tampa since 1982. Profession: Registered Architect, State of Florida as of 1984. FAMILY: I am happily married to Kimberly (Blandy) Dunlap of Tampa, FL (a true Tampa native). Profession: X-Ray Technologist 1990 was the year of our Marriage. I have wonderfull in-laws and an extended, supportive family in Tampa as the result of our marriage. (unfortunately we have no children) Kim has taught me how to live "In the Moment" and enjoy the wonders of "Life & Nature". She is a petite, beautiful brunette with a glowing Mediteranian skin tone, who has a huge heart and a tremendous capacity for compassion and generosity for others. My parents moved to Tampa following my Father's retirement in 1991. Unfortunately, he passed away on July 7th, 2005 and was buried with full Military Honors for his 7 years of service during WWII. He was a man with a great work ethic, a man of integrity and honor and my best friend for most of my life. He supported any endeavor that I chose to pursue and assured me that goals can be achieved if I would be willing to make the necessary sacrifices and apply myself to the task at hand, to the best of my ability, every day. I now have two Fathers in Heaven and have grown closer to God. My mom passed away on Dec. 3, 2007. She was a loving and devoted mother to the day of her death. I am very fortunate to have had 2 wonderful parents. I will always be grateful for their unconditional love and I miss them daily. PHYSICAL IMPROVEMENT & SPORTS: I took up "Body Building & Weight Lifting", following graduation from College, to "transform my body" as College had "expanded my mind". My best physical condition to date: 5'11", 197 lbs muscular body weight, with a 32" waist line. These are not impressive numbers in the world of body building, but are not bad for a child who only weghted 95 lbs when he received his driver's permit at the age of fifteen. My goal was to double that body weight and I did so with a great deal of hard work, self education of proper workouts to build mass, correct form and technique for numerous exercises, the importance of nutrition and invaluable assitance from my friends at the gym. I played over 15 years on multiple, highly competitive, Softball teams in City and Regional Leagues (sometimes 3 teams concurrently during the same season). I generally played Third Base or Short-stop and batted 3rd or 4th in Line-Up. Best batting avearage for any one complete season was 726%. Best playing weight was generally 180 lbs. Following 3 Knee Surgeries, associated with sports injuries, including the last reconstructive knee surgery in 2001 providing me with a "Cadaver ACL" replacement in the right knee, I now enjoy golf and other outdoor activities wherever our schedule permits. SCHOOL 1-12: Starter on all Baseball Teams; Elementary through junior year of High School. Position typically played: Second Base or Third Base, generally the "Lead-off-Hitter" in line-up. Student Council President of Monrovia Junior High School, also voted as: "Most Likely to Succeed", Class of 1972. Valedictorian of S.R. Butler High School, (643 students) Class of 1975. At that time Butler was the largest High School in the State of Alsbama. The size of the school and quality of teaching offered at Butler High School prepared me well for the challenges awaiting me at Auburn University's School of Architecture. Although I am a graduate of Auburn, I remain an Alabama football fan. The examples set by coach Paul "Bear" Bryant (one of the greatest motivators of our time) and the encouragement that I received from my Father taught me that with hard work, dedication and perserverance; any obstacle can be overcome to reach a set goal or objective. I am not alone. We are all capable of accomplishing much more than we can ever imagine. If a job is to be done, it should be done to the best of our ability or not started at all. COLLEGE (CHALLENGES & CHANGES): I decided one day when I was then in the 2nd or 3rd grade, that I was going to attend college. By Junior High I was relatively certain that I wanted to be an Architect. By High School my chosen profession was decided. I am very thankfull to Owens Corning Fiberglass (now known as Kohler/ Sterling Plumbing) for providing me the opportunity to work the 2+ summers following High School. The work was challenging 12 hour shifts, alternating day and night shifts every third week, in an environment covered in fiberglass and one of excessive heat reaching temperatures over 118 degrees on numerous days. However, they paid between 3 to 4 times minimum wage and with overtime I was able to earn enough money to attend the following three quarters of the college year. I chose Auburn University's School of Architecture due to its exceptional reputation as a "Design Oriented" school. Following the completion of two years at Auburn, I chose to become a Cooperative Education Student (alternating work and education quarters) with the Architectural Firm of Edward E. Arnold, AIA of Huntsville to gain practical experience while I was still in school at Auburn. My co-op counterpart was Joseph Fu...Expand for more