Jeff Mizner:
CLASS OF 1997
Moline High SchoolClass of 1997
Moline, IL
John Deere Middle SchoolClass of 1993
Moline, IL
Lincoln - Irving Elementary SchoolClass of 1991
Moline, IL
Fillmore Elementary SchoolClass of 1985
Davenport, IA
Jeff's Story
Life
Grew up in Moline, IL. Joined Navy after graduating from Moline High School in '97. Served onboard USS Nimitz from '98 til '01. Got out of the Navy, started a family. Married my wife in '01. Had first child in the fall of '01. Spent 2 years working at APAC with Merck/Medco Call Center. Rejoined the Navy in the fall of '03. Been Active Duty ever since. Had 2nd child in the fall of '05. Marriage and family still running strong...
School
Hmm... School.
Crushes: I had lots o' crushes in High School, but then again, I was a lost child, still finding my place in the world.
Inspiring Teachers: Mr. Adams, old crazy dude from Drafting class. He was a tough teacher only because he chose to favor the 'jocks' in the class. Me being the 'computer nerd' didn't get the time of day. Really taught me a lot about how the world works :P Mr. Collins from Creative Writing really taught me a lot. Influenced me into writing, which I still occasionally do today. I heard of his death a few years ago, kinda saddened me to hear that the world lost a brilliant and talented author.
Would I do it all over again?: probably. who knows. If i could do it all over again, knowing what I know now, sure. I have really learned a lot in my travels post high school.
Memories: I remember during that holiday festival that the school had every year, the soda machine in the cafeteria broke down and started shooting soda cans out it. I think that I got a 12-pack outta the thing. Big crowd was surrounding this machine, started a mini-riot. Pretty funny, imo. Kids swarming and fighting for Mountain Dew.
Happy/funny moments: Driving up and down 23rd avenue in my truck, my senior year. Every Friday night, same old thing. Just 'cruise the ave'. Had lots of fun with my friends on that strip. Shooting water-guns at people in their convertibles in the summertime. Launching fireworks out the back of my truck. Good times. We were 'stupid kids' who were stuck in a time where it didn't matter. The sky was the limit, and nothing could knock us down.
Military
I had a lot of fun in the Navy. From meeting some of the coolest people to dealing with worst people on the planet. To my peeps who lived with me in Norfolk, miss ya. I heard you all got out the Navy and started your lives. Good on ya.
I remember spending like every night drunk. Bryan, my roommate, had to drag my ass into work, because I was still too drunk to drive. I remember sometimes coming into work after a long night at the club for 'college' night, only to crash in the rack by 8am. This was the place where I discovered my place in the world and what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. No, not drink every night and party hard, but serve the country. Work hard, play hard. I met my wife while stationed in Norfolk, when I was home on leave. I remember break...Expand for more
ing the news to my roommate, Ben, who was a hard ass about everything. He was unhappy with my, then girlfriend, moving in with us. This kid was soo uptight about everything. He once pulled a gun on me, only because I beat him up.
Holy cow, that is soo wierd. Ever have that feeling, you know when you forgot about somethings and then when you 'reminesce' about a place or time, everything comes flooding back. What a mind trip.
Anyways, this kid pulled a gun on me. Then there was like this skirmish and what not. Then this other kid, Tim, picked up the gun and it went off. Some pretty funny stuff. Scary too, because the bullet hole was right behind me in the wall. Bullet went 'through' me. Divine intervention, no matter how you look at it. Everyone stopped, and thought I'd been shot. Was freaky.
Anyways, that was a crazy time in my life. After drinking enough beer and alcohol to fill Lake Michigan, I got out of the Navy and forged the next chapter in my life. The great 'family' man. I spent 2 years working at APAC in Davenport, Iowa. I found that civilian life sucked, because of the lack of structure/discipline. I rejoined the Navy in '03.
I spent the first 8 months in schools, away from my family. I got the chance to revisit the 'crazy' time in my life. Only this time, I had the knowledge and the age that could handle it. Lots of good times. I remember going up to Boston with kids in my class. Spent the whole weekend club hopping. Stayed at the Mariott, like up in the presidential suite. Place was sweet. Paid way too much for an awesome room that we only used to get a few hours sleep while the clubs were shut down. The pubs in Boston rock. Nothing like them, except maybe a few in Northern Chicago, near Wrigley. And even those are 'so-so'.
I had a lot of fun in those schools. I got orders to my first and last submarine, USS San Juan. I had a good time in the 'boat'. Worked very hard, only didn't get to play as hard. The Navy decided to take me off the boat, only because I had a lot of trouble with the family. Everything worked out good in the end with the family. Served on USS San Juan in 04-05. Sub Disqualed due to medical problems. If I could go back to submarine duty, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Far and away it has been the toughest and most rewarding thing I've ever done in my life. I consider myself a pretty intelligent person and catch on fast. Eventually a job becomes 'boring' because I get into a routine and everything becomes easy. Stress levels drop considerably. Submarines have a very high amount of stress. I tend to focus better and I love being 'spark' tested daily. I recently received orders to USS Halyburton, a frigate homeported in Mayport, Florida. Navy figured that it'd be easier on my family and the tempo would be similar to a submarine. Only time will tell...
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