Joe Padilla:
CLASS OF 1980
Joliet East High SchoolClass of 1980
Joliet, IL
Northern Illinois University - NursingClass of 1997
Dekalb, IL
Joe's Story
after graduation, I hung around Joliet until I felt that urge to get the hell out of here and joined the Marine Corps and spent 6 years serving with the best that America had to offer. I then spent the next 10 years living out all of my fantasies and sowing my oats in sunny California, where I worked with INS, Orange County Sheriff, and ultimately as a Los Angeles Police officer. In CA. i learned to rock climb, bouldering, mountain bike (extreme), and other outdoor fun. Time to grow up brought me back to my family and I went to college, became an ER/Trauma nurse, joined the Army Reserves, 1Lt, got married, adopted my son and now work for two hospitals.
It's funny that it has been over 20 yrs since I graduated, and writting it down on this site, it doesn't look like I did a whole lot with that time. Jim Morrison once said that you should live your life so that when you die, they could base a movie on it. He succeeded, hopefully I still have sometime to work on it.
I did leave a lot of fluff out of this, alot of interesting stories that I share with my friends, some I can share with my family, and some I just keep to myself.
Maybe that is what I can base the movie about my life on. Cool idea. I'm not ready to settle down yet and sit in the old rocking chair and die. I still have a lot of life in me and at 46, I'm ready to start the next chapter in life, what ever that may be. Our Army Reserve unit is next in line to be called out to the Sand Box. Funny how life can come to a full circle, when this all started over in Iraq and the Middle East I tried to get back in the Corps, but was told that my ...Expand for more
MOS (military occupation speacialty) was full, then they told me I was too old at 35 when I tried to get back in. Now, 11 yrs later, they'll take me. No problem. I think it's funny.
My best decision in life was to wait to get married for many reasons. Now I am with a person who lives life like me and best of all, her son. I adopted him and he has turned out to be the best surprise in my life. We are trying to have one of our own, but no matter what happens, I am very happy with the one I have now. Life with Kenny and Olga seems to be one big surprise after the other. The best part about being a father of an 11 yr old is that I've had to teach him about sports, fishing, girls, muscle cars, and music! My music, clasic Rock n Roll, not that Rap noise that he listens to, and in return he has taught me much too. Remembering what it was like to be a son and all the fun that I had with my Dad, and of course there is my wife Olga. She drives me nuts, both good and bad, but she is the one that I waited for. This I can tell everytime I look in her eyes.
I hope that all of you have had just as good of a life like the one I am having.
update 10/27
I'm a dad, again!!! On 10/18 my wife gave birth to a 6lb 13oz baby girl. We named her Lillian Piper. My son is excited about his little baby sister. Sometimes I look at her and can't beleive that she is here and mine. If you can't tell this is my first(?). I still have my son and she cannot replace what I have with him, it will just be different. God help the first boy that comes knocking on my door to see her, I'm sure I"ll be cleaning my gun when he walks up.
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