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Timeline of Educational moments
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My Family first arrives in Cleveland
(This date is approximate) The first parts of my family arrive in Cleveland at about this time. I am of the fifth generation of my family to reside in Cleveland/the greater Cleveland area. This gave me a very strong attachment to the city as not only my home right now but as my ancestral home as well. This attachment has led me to be fiercly loyal to Cleveland and caused me to take a strong interest in everything about it. -
WWII
World War Two begins. I had nine members of my family fight during the War for the United States. One was killed, and another wounded twice. Though I would never meet three of them, the stories and recollections that were passed on to me by my relatives would encourage me to study history in order to find out more, not only about the War and what they did, but other areas of history as well. -
John McNeely KIA
My mother's uncle, Lt. John McNeely Jr. is killed in action during the Battle of the Buldge. His death would later be something of a research project for my immediate family. Many details were unclear and family members who knew him were reluctant to share the information that they knew. This would give me some experience in regards to having to research a subject. -
1948 World Series
The Indians win the World Series. My grandfather would see three of the games in person, and I still have much of his memorabilia. It is a moment which gives me something to feel pride in my city about, and it's an event which reminds me that history is not always about Wars or great conflicts, and that everything from sports to chemistry has history in it. -
JFK Assassinated
President John F. Kennedy is assassinated. This would have a big impact on my father's life as well as my own. The death of the President is one of my father's first vivid memories and he talks about the event fairly frequently. In addition, my father also is an amature researcher on the subject, pouring over the countless details and possible mysteries surrounding the assassination. His fascination with the subject was passed on to me which furthered my interest in history. -
Apollo 1 Fire
Three US Astronauts are killed in a fire during a routine test on the launch pad. This is another of my father's vivid memories which he would frequently talk to me about. My father had always taken an interest in the space program, and in the middle of the Space Race this was of course huge news. This is more than just a historical event for me. My father's love of the Space Program is another thing that I inherited, and it gave me an interest in science as well as history. -
The Moon Landing
Apollo 11 Lands on the Moon. While this is a memory both my parents share, and is another event in the space program, I list it here for a different reason. Due to the historic nature of the event, Niel Armstrong has esentially become an immortal person in human history. It is because of this, that I chose him to be the subject of my first biography report I did in grade school. -
My parents are married.
This is somewhat of an obvious date having significance in my life. Without my parents i could never have been born. It also joined together two large families which has given me a wealth of recollections and experiences which are not my own that I can draw on from the different members of my family. -
My Birthday
I am born. 1990-2000: Over my first ten years, my father passed on his love for history to me and I began to learn about my family and its role in the great events of the past. I also became very interested in the Space Race and the Kennedy assassination because my father lived through them and talked about them with me. I also share the same birthday as Franklin Pierce, my dad's favorite President, which is yet another historical link. -
The Millenium
The Millenium Celebration. It was definitely a special day. I knew of course that this was a historical event that only happened once every 1000 years, but that was not what really interested me in the day. Unlike most New Year's celebrations that i could recall, I remember that all day long the news stations were covering the celebrations around the world. I got my first glimpse of of exotic locales and it gave me a greater sense of what the world is like. -
9/11
September 11th, 2001: The terrorist attacks on New York and Washington. This is when I first had a true experience of getting to live through history. Though what I saw that day was fascinatingly terrible, I knew it was akin to the Kennedy Assassination which my father so often spoke of. I was seeing History as it happened and I knew it was a day that would be seared into my memory. -
Pearl Harbor 60th Anniversary
The 60th Anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. I asked a teacher if we could honor the attack on Pearl Harbor. This was only three months after the 9/11 attacks and my sense of partiotism had swelled as a result. She said yes, and I gave my first lecture on a historical subject, and had to do the whole thing by memory. This was the moment i decided to be a teacher. -
Joe Mullally
My grandfather Joe Mullally dies. This was a great personal loss and due to the longevity of my family was the first time a person I was close to had died. He was a WWII veteran and supplied me with many stories of his days in the Army. He also talked of the old days in Cleveland many times. My love for this city is something I truely picked up from him, and when i look down a downtown street, I always try to picture in my mind the city he knew. -
First Freelance lecture
My former eighth grade teacher asked me to come back at the end of my first year of high school and give a lecture on D-Day. On the 62nd anniversary i came in and delivered a lecture to the incoming eighth grade class. I decided the best way to give the lecture would be to immerse the students in the time and place. To do that i first brought in personal items of my relatives from The War, -
I begin at JCU
My First day at JCU. College is the biggest educational experience one person can have, and i'm lucky that I've gotten this chance to have this kind of education.
