Wayne Grabow:  

The short version: In high school, I was an uninvolved dreamer, lacking the confidence to set my own goals, and instead doing a poor imitation of my friends’ behavior. Starting college at NU, I pledged a fraternity, hoping to learn to be ‘one of the guys’, but it didn’t take. Then I read the opening pages of “Atlas Shrugged” emphasizing the need to pursue our own interests and talents, rather than trying to fulfill the expectations of others. It wasn't that this was a new thought for me, but it was 'the final straw' that got me committed to a big change. While in HS, I had already joined US Navy Reserves and completed basic training. I withdrew from college (on full ride scholarship status), left everything familiar behind, and entered active duty, starting with navigation school in San Diego. Next was a year in the Mekong Delta, followed by a return to Vietnam on a Navy destroyer. During this time, I started to appreciate that life can be the opportunity for an ongoing adventure. You learn who you are and what you are capable of by planning, committing, and accepting challenges; not by following what is familiar. I do not believe in allowing random events to control destiny. While pursuing your own interests, you meet others who share those interests. I completed my engineering degree at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 1971 and had a job awaiting me in Portland, Oregon. Along the way, I had met this beautiful girl, Dawn, with similar values and independent budget like myself; we married to share our awaiting adventure. Then, we had a year in Oregon, followed by 3 months traveling the US, two years in Northern California, then a career switch. 1974-78 at Creighton dental education during which I joined the US Army, and in return they paid for my dental training. 1978-79 in South Carolina, 1979-82 on the At...Expand for more