Ernie was born and raised in the Midwest.  His parents divorced after WW II, so he alternated between living  with his mother and father.  As a result of these moves, he attended both large and small school districts.  Upon high school graduation with a scholarship, he worked part time and attended a junior college to save money.  After spending three years in the Army– most of which was spent in West Germany–he finished college working full time and attending night school.  He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering.

His first engineering job was with a technology company which sent him overseas primarily to start up new plants licensed and designed by his company.  Ernie spent forty years working mostly for engineering and design companies and participating in the design of many refinery, chemical and gas processing plants.  As an engineer, his job was to solve problems in order to produce a product meeting the client’s specifications.

During his army and engineering stints, Ernie spent almost four years living overseas in Europe, Asia and Australia.  To really appreciate what living in the United States means, everyone should spend time in the military and living in other countries.