Rather than have you go through the litany of events, just trust that Bernie's life has been much like a roller coaster ride. He does not like roller coasters or looking at the past. Surf the net to www.4him.net and select the CD SHOP. One of my favorite songs is number 7 - "Ride of Life". You can even listen to the song.
After high school, Bernie accepted an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point. He was sworn in as a new Cadet on July 4, 1966. Twenty-mile hikes with ninety-pound packs did nothing but damage the high school football knee injury. The Point was not up to date in athletic training or sports medicine. A simple quote from the coach, "You can not wear tape into combat, so you can not wear it on the football field."
Bernie returned to Clinton and began pre-law study and played college football with the draft status of 4F (medically unfit for military duty). Bernie had more orthopedic injuries in college than high school. On the football field Bernie was HOSTILE, MOBILE, AGILE AND FRAGILE.
In February of 1970, Bernie married Joycelyn Walters of Magee, MS. Bernie enrolled at the University of Mississippi School of Law, and Joycelyn started her senior year in education at Ole Miss. Bernie attacked law school with the same fervor as the athletic field. He was completely burned out at the end of a successful first year and did not return to law school.
Bernie joined the teaching and coaching staff at Forest Hill High School in Jackson, MS. After two years, Bernie, Joycelyn and Alise moved to Natchez, MS. At South Natchez Adams High School, Bernie coached football, track and cross-country and taught Advanced History. While teaching in Natchez, Bernie completed teacher certification for the State of Mississippi. Bernie had found his place in coaching and teaching. The Justice Department forced a consent decree on the Natchez-Adams School District in 1976. Seven days before the start of the 1976 fall football season, Bernie's contract was changed. An offer Bernie had to refuse.
Bernie then accepted an offer from his father-in-law to join the family business, Stephen's Store. He began an MBA program at Mississippi College but was side tracked by the computer courses. After successful conversion of the family business, Bernie began a retail consulting business. When he discovered that a local business and prospective client had chosen Management Systems for their computer system, Bernie approached the MISSCO Corporation for a position in 1987.
Bernie enjoyed several challenging responsibilities, but none were more exciting than new product development. The team began a good work with the Microsoft Windows Developer Kit. The death of the CEO, James Campbell, resulted in the sell off the software and other commercial divisions.
In January 1992, Bernie joined the School Supply & Equipment Division as a project manager over contract sales in six states. You can discover more about the MISSCO Corporation by going to: www.missco.com and www.sheldonlabs.com.
Family
Joycelyn , Bernie's wife has been teaching in the Magee public schools. She currently teaches eighth grade science and drama. Joycelyn and Bernie have four children.
Alise (27) and John Acker now live in Columbus, MS. John is a new State Farm Insurance Agent. Alise graduated with honors from Magee High School and Mississippi College. She now has her hands full with Mary Elizabeth who is 18 months.
Jonathan (23) graduated with honors from Mississippi College in December with a degree in Graphic Design. He has used his other talents as a song writer, guitar player and lead singer for a Christian rock band: "Radio Driver". They have just released their second CD. Check out his web page designs at: www.angilefire.com/ms/whatnotrock/ . Jonathan and Phillip are the two guys on the left of the first picture on the History page.
Phillip (18) is a senior at Magee High School. He plays bass guitar for Radio Driver. Phillip is interested in computer engineering. He is already studying CISCO routers, the hardware for Internet connections.
Caleb (14) is an eighth grade student. He was on the high school soccer team this year. Caleb has developed as a piano player. He can learn to play anything. His favorite music is classical or swing. The family knew he had become an accomplished pianist when no one objected to his playing.
Special interests: Cardio-Combat Aerobics, weight lifting, reading and listening to music.
