he was born in west virginia in 1940 and graduated from fairmont state university with a bachelor's degree in general engineering. he worked for bethenergy mines inc., a division of bethlehem steel, for over thirty years. from 1997 until 2003 he was the director of the pennsylvania bureau of deep mine safety. he presided over the quecreek mine rescue in somerset county, pennsylvania on 24 july 2003.