Middle Age

When I reached my thirties, life changed big time. I initially thought my new career with the U.S. Park Police would be very brief, just long enough to get started living in a new environment. However, after graduating from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, I began to appreciate the many advantages of a potential career with the U.S Park Police and that eventually became a serious option. 

However, about 4 or 5 years into my police career, I passed the FBI exam with a score of 87. The passing score was 80 but I was never hired. Why? Two FBI agents called me into their office to reluctantly explain that many black guys who scored less than 87, and some of whom didn’t even get the minimum score of 80, were going to be hired because of a federal Affirmative Action program. So much for fairness and doing things right. As you can tell, that’s still a painful memory. Even though I wanted to be an FBI agent, I loved being a member of the U.S. Park Police in the Washington, DC area.

In 1979 I bought a house in Columbia, MD, got married, and lived in that home for the next 16 years. We had two children, a boy and a girl. I always tell people the best thing that ever happened to me was becoming a father. Being a parent isn’t easy, and just like everyone, I made numerous mistakes along the way. If only I could do it again, I would do it differently, but obviously that won’t happen. I thoroughly enjoyed and continue to love the experience of being a father more than anything else. I was very fortunate to have a son and a daughter and feel sorry for those who never had children.