Terry Rice

Has it been twenty years? Can we really be getting that old? As I read over the blog entries, I can’t help but think back to our senior year high school musical in which the protagonist, Franklin Shepard, looks back on the preceding twenty-five years of his life and ruminates over the many choices he made along that journey. Fortunately, I haven’t become as jaded and pessimistic as the character I played but in keeping with the Merrily We Roll Along theme, I’ll do my update in reverse chronological order.

My wife, two kids, and I live in Lambertville, NJ. Before anyone even thinks about asking the question, you would take Exit 10 off the NJ Turnpike to get to our place. And no, I do not live next door to Tony Soprano but I think Paulie lives just down the road. Actually we live in far western portion of the state along the Delaware River. For those of you that have only experienced the noxious fumes and incessant backups on the dreaded Turnpike, there is a very different side of NJ.

I work for Johnson & Johnson as a Director of Global Information Security and Continuity. It is a job I thoroughly enjoy since it combines many of the things I love: working with the latest computer technology, defending computers and networks from the latest threats and working in a global environment. The latter of which is probably the most rewarding aspect of the job. I have been able to travel all over the world getting to meet and work with people in many countries and cultures. The travel is very hectic and can try the patience of those with the greatest forbearance; but it has given me the ability to see and do some amazing things. During my last trip to India, I was able to stay and extra couple of days and go camping and white-water rafting in the Himalayas. I ended up with an e-coli infection which caused me to spend a week in bed in the fetal position but the experience was well worth it.

Before moving to NJ, my wife and I lived in the Washington DC area for seven years where I occasionally ran into many O’Neill alums. While there I worked as a consultant, defense contractor, Army reservist, and attended graduate school at GWU. Somehow my wife and I managed to have a second child, Aidan, in the middle of all that. Aidan sounds like he is much like Rob’s daughter: always on the go, running, bouncing, jumping etc. I don’t know how Jamie and Holly do it with more than two kids. I guess I just prefer a 1:1 defense instead of zone coverage. Two is enough for me.

Before DC, I spent six years in the Army doing a lot of great stuff. I jumped out airplanes, rappelled out of helicopters, and spent three years in a unit that was prepared to deploy almost anywhere in the world with little more than 24 hours notice. Fortunately during my time I never had to deploy to an active combat zone. I have the deepest respect for people like Kimball and Holly who have continued to serve under the extremely difficult conditions in which we now find our country. I am proud of them.

While in the Army and stationed at Fort Campbell, KY, I met my wife, Leila, who was working on her PhD at Vanderbilt. Before we got married, I moved to Arizona, Leila moved to DC, and shortly thereafter I went to Korea for a year sans wife. While in Korea, I found out that I would probably going to Bosnia upon my return so I got out. 15 months away from my wife was enough. Shortly thereafter we had our first child, Clara, who is the sweet, quiet, calm one.

Which brings me back to West Point. As has already been mentioned, I had a grand total of four days vacation between graduating from high school and going to college. One of those days was spent trying to recover from a graduation party in Garrison…who’s house it was I can’t recall. I enjoyed my time at West Point and even got to room with Kimball during our senior year. However, at this point in life it is definitely something I would not want to have to do again.... that applies equally to West Point and rooming with Kimball.

Well that’s it. I like to think I am much the same person I was in high school. Maybe a little thicker and a little more mature. But I still am excited and passionate about the same things as I was 20 years ago. I think I have avoided the slide into cynicism characterized by Franklin Shepard in the musical. I look forward to meeting many of you again and hearing about what life has done for you or in a few cases what life has done TO YOU.