James Heaton:
CLASS OF 2000
Springfield High SchoolClass of 2000
Akron, OH
Stark State College of TechnologyClass of 2006
Canton, OH
Milroy Elementary SchoolClass of 2000
Akron, OH
James's Story
Life
Well i made it back from my deployment safe and sound. I can say that i am a better person after experiencing what i did. Don't believe all that you see on TV. There is a lot more going on than the media exposes. I worked with all the school systems doing humanitarian projects and playing red-rover and showing kids how to eat an Meal Ready to Eat aka MRE. I did a semester of college when i returned and then i was offered a job working for the Ohio National Guard full time. It is a wonderful job. I also got married to a beautiful woman named Emily back on June 23, 2007. She is my best friend!! We don't have any kids YET, but in the future we are probably going to have 2-3. I bought a house in Louisville where my wife and I reside along with our 6 month old golden retriever Mox. I am also a youth leader and the church where my wife and i got married and are members. If God is for you who can be against you. I love my wife, dog, family, friends and my lord. Without any of these variables life wouldn't be like it is.
School
Yes time does fly right by. It is because you are having fun. When times are miserable it never goes fast. I am sure we all can think back to whatever grade school we went to and come up with a memory or two that we all could share and laugh about. It is those times that help us to stay young forever. I know that there are only a select few that attended Milroy and i am sure there are plenty of us that have our named signed on his paddle several times for getting into trouble. Ok well maybe that was the old young me and not your, but it made me a better person. Afterall it did give me a story to tell. Then you have Jr High and High School. I am sure there are a lot of things that we wish we could change, but the fact of the matter is we can't. To live in the past as we did in High school is to not live at all. Overall it was a great experience and i wouldn't trade it for anything.
College
Because i chose a career already i haven't finished all of my college yet. However i am working diligently to acomplish that task. The military is paying 100% of it so why wouldn't i finish it. My experience is that college is what you make of it. If you put in the time and hard work then it will be rewarding in the end. If you slack off and do the wrong thing then you may still get your diploma, but you will suffer sometime in your career. College is part of the building block of a solid foundation on which you can build a life for you and your family if you have one. If college isn't for you then there are always Vocational schools and direct trades that you can learn. The more education that you have the farther you will go on your path to acomplishing all the goals you have set forth for youself. If you ...Expand for more
give up and think that you can't do it then you are just selling yourself short and you really need to give yourself more credit.
Workplace
My workplace is great. I have such comradre with my office partner. Him and I have formed a wonderful friendship that extends to our wives and our families. The thing about a job is that find one that makes you feel good about who you are. It may not have the best pay and it may not have the worst pay, but as long as you enjoy what you do that is all that matters. I see so many people who are wealthy, but their home life suffers from all the time they put into their job....therefore resulting in unhappiness/divorce and so on. Then they get caught up in living a certain life style resulting in never being able to leave that job in fear of losing it all. So find a career that you enjoy doing and cross every bridge that it takes to get there! Always make time for your God and your family first and you can't go wrong.
Military
If you asked me 8 years ago if i would be in the Army and making a career out of it. I would have told you no way. The National Guard has opened up so many doors for me and my family. They paid 100% of my college tuition and gave me a big sign on bonus. The only time i had to serve was one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer. I stepped up though and decided that i would go overseas and do my duty for my friends, family and loved ones back at home. Here i am with 6 1/2 years in the military and on my way to retirement at 41. Now i reach out to kids who don't have a path to travel down in their life and are going no where fast. Where they live the job market isn't good and there is only trouble lerking around at every corner. I am so greatful that i get to make a differnce in someones life and give them hope that they deemed lost. Looking back i think it is the smartest thing i have done. The military aides in helping people find out who they really are. Through the training and the experience they receive they also find themselves doing things that they never thought was possible before. I don't regret it at all. There are so many benefits to being in the service. I have traveled all over the world doing different missions with so many multi-ethnic units. I have lived in a 3rd world country and i have a differnt kind of appreciation for what American Citizens take for granted on a daily basis. When you think that you have it bad in life just think of the people in 3rd world countries who don't have the luxury of indoor plumbing, 24hr electricity, good paying jobs or even a job for that matter. You never know what you have until you have to give it up or you have lost it. Right now i am really missing the states and all the luxuries it has to offer.
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