Before Working for a Living...

I grew up in a suburban/rural town in the Connecticut River Valley and did what most kids of my generation did, namely behave badly and periodically prove to be an embarrassment to their given name.

My father was Mayor of the town for nearly 20 years, so I became involved in civic life by joining the local Volunteer Ambulance Association and the Rescue Squad at the local Fire Department. I eventually became a Medic and a Lt. and, yes, was well on my way to becomming a "townie." In fact, because of the notariety that comes with a well known family name, a good part of the town turned out to watch a few of us launch our homemade pontoon boat (55 Gal drums welded together with a deck and a rebuilt 75HP engine) into the CT River at the Rocky Hill Ferry... My parents beamed with pride! I didn't have the heart to tell them that everyone just wanted to see it sink... (It didn't!)

I always spent a good deal of time out in the woods and fields where I grew up, and spent as much time as I could in and around the water. I was especially fond of boating around Watch Hill and Block Island in Rhode Island, the latter being where I saw my first wind turbine that provided power to the island. I have been fascinated with renewable energy resources ever since, and have even built solar panels, one of which I still use as a battery charger. I also drive a Prius, Toyota's gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle.

I was also involved with sports through High School and into College (Swimming, Soccer, Football), and kept the local vet busy with broken bones and a few surgeries here and there. (But I'm feeling much better now...)

Once I made it to University...

I entered the College of Engineering at Boston University with the Major of Biomedical Engineering-Pre Med. After sophomore year, however, I decided I liked physics and computers more than I liked inorganic chemistry and biology, so I switched majors. This bothered my father no end because I had been accepted by Skidmore and Dartmouth (his alma matter) for a 3-2 engineering program, but went with BU instead. (BU had a highly regarded Biomedical Engineering program at that time -circa 1980- and Dartmouth did not.)

After settling down in my new major (Electrical & Computer Engineering), I became a teaching assistant/fellow for both the College of Engineering and the College of Liberal Arts (Math/Computer Science). This allowed me to become involved with professors' projects and gave me exposure to corporate America.

After deciding to get married, and realizing I had to have a job, a place to live, and buy all the stuff Mom & Dad used to worry about, I put my name into the pool for the on-campus recruitment and took my first job in the "real world" shortly thereafter. At one point in my career, I ended up working for a company that sent me to Cambridge University to work on my product. This was followed by working for a couple of companies in various roles followed by my deciding to become a consultant, then return to corporate America, pursuing a Masters in Geoscience, and so on. For more on this subject, have a look at my Bio/Resume/CV, or check out my profile on LinkedIn.com .

When not working for a living, I enjoy a number of activities including gardening and woodworking, Freemasonry, performing in a couple of choirs (voice and English Handbells - even recorded a CD of Christmas Music), and attend a few clubs (Minerals, Linux, Charities, etc.). I am also slowly getting closer to converting my home to solar. (My wife claims she hasn't seen anything from the workshop save those doorstops I made everyone for Christmas one year, and insists she weeds the garden more than I. She isn't very confident about the solar conversion either, but it's just a matter of time!)

Karen and I both love the water and head north to Squam Lake (a.k.a. "On Golden Pond") or south to Watch Hill when we get the chance. We generally make one skiing trip a year, like to hike around the lakes, reservoirs and beaches in our area, play bridge (down one is good bridge), and otherwise try to stay out of trouble.

The best way to get in touch with me is by e-mail.

I hope you enjoy this site! Please let me know if you find problems with the site.

-- Stephen C. Daukas, January, 2004