Ben Brennan:
CLASS OF 1987
Stanton College PreparatoryClass of 1987
Jacksonville, FL
Embry - Riddle Aeronautical UniversityClass of 1994
Daytona beach, FL
Western Wayne High SchoolClass of 1987
Lake ariel, PA
Beaty-Warren Middle SchoolClass of 1983
Warren, PA
North Warren Elementary SchoolClass of 1979
Warren, PA
Ben's Story
Life
In retrospect, I believe that my choice of colleges was a poor one; Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University was a pretty expensive, specialized college, and it aligned me into a very hardscrabble industry. Profitability is so linked to the mood of the economy and fuel prices as well as employee wages and salaries. In addition, management jobs (as one climbs higher up the company ladder) center around very specific locations since airlines consolidate their resources in 'hub' or few-and-far-between station locations, most of them (unless you had high seniority) located up north (brrrr!). The biggest benefit of working for the airlines (imo) was/is free air travel... but that urge to roam had long since left me.
I worked as an A&P (aircraft) mechanic for 5'ish years in Phoenix, Ft. Lauderdale, then finally Jacksonville, FL, before taking a pay-cut to step onto the lowest rung of the management ladder -- what was available; I was a Heavy Maintenance Planner for 2+ years. Being a mechanic (to me) was interesting and often fun as well as exciting -- I sometimes miss it.
Anywho, 9/11 happened and the airlines went thru several rounds of layoffs. My entire base was closed by the end of it, but I was thankfully gone before then. The tension of worrying about losing your job from day-to-day was horrible, and morale was in the toilet. Time for a second career.
I thought that I was being prudent by getting an A.S. degree in Computer Networking while I was still working at USAirways in case I had to make a sudden career shift, but after y2k, companies expected (and could get) workers w/ solid, hard experience, which I _could've_ gotten if I was willing to move cities, but I was/am not. My CompSci A.S. wasn't the sound backup that I thought it was.
To be honest, after working for the airlines, I wanted to take a break, and having the luxury to do so, I did. I was engaged and co-habitating for a while. That didn't work out -- probably for the best. I was going to further my education and get a graduate degree in SOMETHING; for a while it looked like I was going to get a graduate degree in Physical Therapy but the school I had applied to...Expand for more
was filled for the Fall and overflowed into the Spring, and I didn't want to idle another 8 months waiting. My dad (retired psychiatrist) kept bugging me to either relocate to the Philippines to attend medical school or do Nursing. It was easy to say no to moving to the Philippines, but coincidentally enough, the prereq's for Physical Therapy were exactly the same for Nursing. I didn't want to sit around. I figured that I'd start the 4-semester Nursing program and I could change my mind/quit out if I changed my mind to pursue Physical Therapy. However, by the time openings were available in the Physical Therapy college for a graduate degree, I was already halfway thru the nursing program and xferring out for 2 more years of (grad) school was unappealing to me.
As most know, its easier to continue something than to restart and I found that I hated the idea of quitting. Nursing wasn't SO bad. Most of the problem was/is in my own mind regarding the gender bias. So, as of 12/07, I finished and received an A.S. in Nursing. I passed my state board exam (NCLEX) for the Registered Nurse (RN) license in March '08 and got my first job choice as an RN after my first interview at my favorite local hospital. I started taking classes for my B.S. degree in Nursing while working full-time and will probably finish in about a year, with continued focused effort. I hopefully will continue and get a graduate degree in Nursing after working a few years, since tons of opportunities open up with it. To date, I have accumulated 1 B.S. and 4 A.S. degrees, and I'm SO tired to school! (yet I know that I have to continue to progress)
I live in Jacksonville, Florida, in my own house. My next older brother moved in with me. I have a handsome Norwegian Forest Cat that I had adopted at the Humane Society while in Ft. Lauderdale. My parents are in town and are the reason that I'm staying in Jax. -- dad is turning 81 and mom is almost 80.
I'm not much of a social person and offer no excuses for it. However, there are a few people from my past that I would happily like to re-establish contact with. Hence, Classmates. Ciao!
jaxplan[at]hot mail[dot] com.
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