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A native of Essex, Montana, on the southern border of Glacier National Park, I was raised there and in Whitefish, Montana, a division point on the former Great Northern Railway, now the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway.  My father, Ordway (1917-1991) was an Agent/Telegrapher for the GN/BN and later a ticket agent for BN/Amtrak in Whitefish.  From 1966 until 1971 he served as Scoutmaster of Whitefish Troop 28, Boy Scouts of America, inspiring me to attain the rank of Eagle in 1969.  You may find some of his safety and tenure awards in the Historical Museum in the Whitefish Depot.  My mother, Rae (1921-1983) also once worked for the GNRy.  Mom was the first person in Montana to be awarded the honor of Life Membership in the PTA -- she was the soul of community service.  In 1975, my daughter Adyn was born.  In the '70s and '80s I worked as a Signalman and Centralized Traffic Control Maintainer for the Burlington Northern.   I lived in Libby, Montana for several years, and spent a short time living in many places including Spokane, Seattle, Portland, Pasco, and, of course, Whitefish during my railroading career.   Check the Photo Album Page for some early photos of myself, my family, and Essex.

Leaving the Railroad in the late 1980s, I used my technical background to get work in AutoCAD at Gonzaga University and at Ponderay Newsprint near my dad's home town of Newport. I worked several summers in the administration of Boy Scout camps in the Pacific Northwest.  These jobs helped me get through my Bachelor's Degree at Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA.   I hold the degree  Bachelor of Arts with Dual Majors in Music (Voice Performance) and Music Education from Gonzaga.  I attended Loyola University in New Orleans, Louisiana, and hold the degree Master of Music in Conducting from there.

I followed the music dream through the coursework for the AMD at The University of Arizona.  However, my work in computers and networking has taken me a long way and I am very excited about my work life.  I have been with Keane, Inc., an outsource partner of Microsoft.  I began as a Support Engineer on Windows 95, then was able to get to the site's premier project, FrontPage.  I was involved with Microsoft as a Trainer, and began to work toward becoming a certified trainer again.  After having become a Lead Engineer, then a Senior Lead Engineer, I obtained my Microsoft Certifications as MCSE (Systems Engineer) and MCT (Trainer).  These certifications are among the most respected Software Engineer credentials currently in existence.  I also did my PhD in MIS online during my time at Keane.

In June '98, I was promoted to Technical Trainer, the first one in Keane's Tucson CTEC (Microsoft Certified Training and Education Center), but the non-competition policies wouldn't allow me to take advantage of a great opportunity to be on the faculty of the University of Phoenix, so I left Keane in February 1999.  At first, I taught Microsoft Official Curriculums at the University, and then had the opportunity to teach courses in their Bachelor's and Master's programs.  Because they love it when I get experience, I was free to consult, do contract teaching, work for other companies, and really take advantage of my certifications.  Oh -- speaking of certifications, I finished my MCSE +Internet in August of 1999.  Another great thing -- I can get time off, and I used this freedom to take two weeks and travel to Michigan and sing the Baritone Solos to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with the Superior Festival Orchestra.  There were two concerts in July, 1999, and they were great fun, and very well received.  The orchestra was very musical, the choir was great, and I was in the best voice ever.  What a great feeling!

Big news!  On December 31, 1999, Kariina and I had a son, Ordway Robert Persyn.  We call him OP, and he is doing great.  Talking up a storm, although we aren't always smart enough to understand what he's saying.  He's very strong, and goes full blast from morning until night.  Our friends who have children are jealous -- he puts himself to bed when he's tired.  OP is schooled at home, and is currently in first/second grade -- he's doing second grade in some subjects, first grade in others.

In  1999, I served as Director of IT with an HMO back in Arizona.  Great experience for me in Technical Management.  In 2000, I became part of the administration of U of Phoenix, and am currently serving as their regional manager of Information Technology.  That year, I finished my MCSE in Windows2000.  Since becoming a University administrator,  I have been living with my family near Baton Rouge, Louisiana in a town called Denham Springs.  I am the chief technologist for the region, 10 southeastern states and Puerto Rico, 19 campuses which contain 41 sites.  I travel a lot in my job, and it can be very demanding, but it is rewarding, too.

Of course, in 2005, there were lots of storms to clean up after.  Katrina, Rita, and Wilma all created a lot of work, both at home and on the job.

In 2006, we became proud owners of a 36' Fifth Wheel RV.  We did a 7000 mile 20 state trip, highlighted by a visit with my daughter Adyn and her family in our RVs near Glacier National Park.  It was the best vacation EVER!  Another nice thing about the RV is that we have a way to bug out during the next hurricane that comes our way.  It has a generator that runs on propane, which is easy to get, so we have power and refrigeration, and that all-important A/C to make it through the rough spots.

Since this fall, I have again become active in the Scouts, since OP is in Tiger Cubs.  I am the District Commissioner for Tunica District of the Istrouma Area Council.  We spend many happy weekends up at Camp Avondale in our RV, who we call Happy (Happy Camper, get it?) pulled by our Dually Ford F350 King Ranch (named, of course, Tom Dually).

Check back again for more about my life and career.  I will try to keep this current.