Mike Reeder:  

While attending Putnam City West, I took an art class called Commercial Art. I absolutely fell in love with creating advertising art and it made a huge impression on me. I really wanted to pursue Commercial Art, or Graphic Design, as it is called now. I also wanted to attend Oklahoma State University. Sadly, they didn't offer Graphic Design, as they do today. In fact, the only art degree was in Fine Art which isn't a great way to make a living, as everyone knows. But, after graduation from PCW, with the Viet Nam "Police Action" going on, getting a 2S deferment was uppermost in my mind. I decided to go to OSU even thought they didn't offer the degree I was interested in which I figured wouldn't hurt my experience. Unfortunately, I enjoyed my new-found freedom too much, and made terrible grades which landed me on probation. A year went by and I was classified 1A which made me less than happy, but Nixon ended the draft. I never liked him as a politician, or a man, but I sure liked that decision! Best thing he ever did! I quit school and worked construction with the idea of saving money, and putting myself through Oklahoma State Technical Institute with a degree in Graphic Design. After a year of doing house framing, and concrete work around Stillwater, I enrolled in Graphic Design at "Tech", and have had a great career in that field for these past 39 years. My first professional job was at OCU in Oklahoma City, where I did all the promotional work for the various departments from brochures for the law school, to tickets, flyers, and posters for the performing arts school. Then, I moved to Tulsa where I began working for Petroleum Publishing Company, now PennWell, Corp., designing trade books, magazine covers, and whatever else needed to be done. I worked as Art Director for 18 years for a trade magazine called Dental Economics, one called PROOFS, and later one for hygienists called RDH. I am still...Expand for more