About the Author
Hello and welcome to my website. My story begins on May 14, 1960, in Kankakee Illinois, a small town about 60 miles south of Chicago. I was the youngest of my siblings and we were all blessed with wonderfully patient and loving parents.
Growing up in the sixties my first imprints were the assassination of John F. Kennedy and The Beatles debut performance on The Ed Sullivan Show. The significance of the Vietnam war and the associated events of the time created an intensity that was present all around me that I could sense. Some of those cultural elements have influenced me and have continued with me throughout my life. All you need to do is just go and watch the original TV show the Wonder Years. My life pretty much mirrored the character Kevin and his adventures learning about life. The major difference was my crush was on a girl named Sara.
The high school years were centered around sports, the outdoors, and anything music. I was good at the “going outdoors” part; however, I wasn’t so talented at any of the sports and music stuff. After graduating, I went to the Berklee School of Music in Boston where I quickly discovered I was not cut out to be a professional musician. I returned home for a short time and rebooted myself by moving to Atlanta and enrolling in a program for learning the music business. After I completed the program, I landed a job with a music distributor in Chicago. I was promoted to be the representative in the St. Louis regional office. I worked with some of the most recognized performers of the time. It was the job of my dreams and I felt set for life. I learned that you should always have a plan B.
Soon after, in 1988 I married my wife Faith and I went back to college and finished my bachelor’s degree. For the next 25 years I was in human resources management. Many of the aspects of my job were enjoyable, the most enjoyable was interviewing people. There was always something entertaining and educational to listening to people’s stories. I learned everyone has their story to tell and something to learn from it.
It was Christmas morning 2016 that I woke up with a story in my head. That story totally changed the direction of my life. It has taken me down a road I never knew was there. Follow the direction of this journey in the section About the Book.
Wishing you all the best!
My email address is kevinsspivey@gmail.com.