David Swearingen
After Borah, I earned a BA in Journalism & Broadcasting at Pepperdine University, followed by an MA in Communications at USC. I married, Karen, my college sweetheart, in 1969, and we moved to Boise, where our daughter and son were later born. I first worked in Corporate Communications Management for five years at Idaho Power, then joined Morrison Knudsen in a similar role for seven years in Boise, followed by another four years in San Francisco. In 1989, I was recruited by Johnson & Johnson, the global health care products company, in New Jersey, where I spent 23 wonderful years. It was a fantastic business environment, with a wide range of enlightening and fascinating experiences. We lived along the Atlantic Coast in NJ, with a small apartment in Manhattan, NY. I retired as Corp. VP, Corporate Communications, in 2009. We moved to Abilene, TX, to be near our only grandchild and his parents. Our second grandson was born this past May, also in Abilene, and now we're eagerly awaiting the arrival of our first granddaughter, in Manhattan in Sept, over the same weekend as our class reunion. To escape the Texas summer heat, we spend 6-8 weeks every year at our small second home in Kauai. 

Aside from celebrating the arrival of our children and grandchildren, here are my most rewarding personal experiences since high school: 1. After college, both of our children performed on Broadway for 10 years in musical theatre  -- it was thrilling to see them perform on-stage; 2. At Johnson & Johnson, I was privileged to visit more than 50 countries in Europe & Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia & the Far East, Latin America and North America in the course of my 23-year career; 3. Other career highlights include hosting the late Margaret Thatcher, former UK Prime Minister, as a guest speaker during a Johnson & Johnson Global Management Meeting in 1992; and, Hosting former President George H.W. Bush, another J&J guest speaker, in 1994. (Sitting together aboard a J&J Corp aircraft, Pres. & Mrs. Bush held hands all the way home to Kennebunkport, ME); 4. Another memorable experience for me was the opportunity to work closely for 17 years with the late Dr. C. Everett Koop, former U.S. Surgeon General, in leading the global development of Safe Kids Worldwide (a child accident prevention initiative sponsored by J&J in 18 countries); 5. In 2006, I was honored to serve as a guest speaker during a Community Peace & Safety Celebration in Soweto Township, South Africa, an event sponsored by the UN & Safe Kids Worldwide; 6. Over the years, my focus on Safe Kids Worldwide for J&J also involved working with four U.S. leaders, including former Vice President Al Gore and three others who served as Secretary of State -- George Schultz, James Baker, and Condoleezza Rice; Dr. Rice presented the State Department's Benjamin Franklin Award for Global Diplomacy to J&J and me in 2008; 7. I retired in 1994 from the Air National Guard as a Lt. Col. after a 25-year career in Idaho, California & New Jersey as a Public Affairs Officer & Navigator in HC-130P Hercules combat rescue aircraft.