9 June 26

Happy belated birthday (3 June), Amy Graham! Amy worked with me in Information Technology at EKU from the 1990s through my retirement at the end of 2023. She is the Manager for Administrative Support. She gave me this tie in 2022; it originally belonged to her airplane-loving father, Gary Kearns.

I'm also recognizing the birthday (on 31 May) of Charles Woolum, my EKU comrade in Blackboard-land for several years. Charles now works in information technology for University of Kentucky Health Care. Two special notes regarding him: (1) Charles was a student in my first "Honors Rhetoric" class at EKU, and (2) he is responsible for gifting me several ties in my collection. I'm including a photo of my Duct Tape tie, a Christmas present from 2010.

One more special note: Today is National Forklift Safety Day! If you use one, please do it safely, today and every day.

6 June 23

Happy Birthday (on 3 June), Amy Graham! Amy and I have worked together for Academic Computing, now Information Technology, at EKU for a good long time. Her responsibilities for "customer service" are quite different from mine in learning management administration, but our office spaces are only a short distance apart. My tie originally belonged to her father, Gary Kearns (1948-2021). He was a small airplane pilot in California and Kentucky, and the manager of the Central Kentucky Regional Airport. Amy says she remembers many good family flights!

2 June 22

Today I'm helping to celebrate two birthdays among my EKU comrades! Tomorrow (a no-tie day for me) is Amy Graham's birthday; we have worked together in "Academic Computing" and then "Information Technology" for over 25 years. My tie originally belonged to her father, Gary Kearns (1948-2021). He was a small airplane pilot in California and Kentucky, and the manager of the Central Kentucky Regional Airport. Amy says she remembers many good family flights! Today is Jonathan Sikora's birthday; we have worked together in Blackboard-land for more than 7 years. Regarding the theme of my tie, Jonathan says "I do enjoy flying and am interested in airplanes, but I don’t have any special attachment. I did want to be a pilot when I was a kid." Happy Birthday, Amy and Jonathan!