I was encouraged to leave high school in 1957 to go to work for Kearney pattern works. They were skilled craftsmen and they were making good money in those days. If you had stayed in that trade you would be making plenty of money today.

But by my senior year in high school I had already joined the Marine Corps. I joined the reserve unit so I didn’t drop out of high school although in those days there were fewer stigmas about dropping out of high school. In those days Employers were looking for workers. They were looking for people who wanted to learn trades.

I went to a three year high school that had 350 kids. The graduating class had 35 kids. Half of the 35 were married and had kids already, and the rest were off working. People started life a lot earlier.

My high school had everything from mechanics to electricians to plumbers to print shop. The school was located on the city college campus on Moorpark Avenue.

When I came back from the marines I could have gone to college; my wife did. But I wasn’t in that track. I took an additional two years of drafting, mechanical engineering, and business administration. I went to work after that and have been working ever since.

After I get out of the marine corps, I went to work for Sears. I installed batteries and did those kinds of things in the auto shop.

Then I went to work for the yellow pages selling advertising. My ex – in laws were career phone company people. They got me a job and I worked out of San Francisco for quite awhile.

After my divorce I worked at a few other jobs.

Then I went to work as a draftsman for the San Jose water works. I worked there for ten years and helped to turn this office into the first unionized one. I helped found the operating engineers Union local three.

The company used to hire people off the street and pay them more money than they paid to seasoned employees. They told these new guys to keep their wages hush – hush. It got pretty bad. As you know engineers are the easiest people to organize, but that’s how bad it got.

This was some of my very first political activity, and I’ve been active ever since.

During this time I met my wife Barbara. We married and had an apartment in Campbell than a house in San Jose.

Then we found this house here in Santa Cruz four years ago. Barbara was working at Moreland school district in San Jose then she went to work at Laurel school, which is now Louden Nelson Center. It was a small school with only about 350 students. There were a lot of low income kids going to that school. They were a challenge to educate.

At this time I was involved in an umbrella organization called Riptide USA That was designed to help worker-owned start – up companies. I ran General Feed and Seed for a while. They were in trouble and they asked me to step in and help. It was at the old live oak grange building. Later on it moved to the big Quonset hut.

Basically it was an alternative lifestyle cooperative. The women’s health collective, the recycling center and a lot of other worker – owned businesses started there. That started my community involvement.

I was working in San Jose during this time and I had two dairy goats. I had to get up for in the morning and milk them, go to work all day, then come home and milk them at night. Barber used to make cheeses.

Then I got involved in a cooperative to distribute produce grown by organic farmers in the area. We started to deliver produce grown by various organic farms. This was all on the side and in addition to my regular work.

We were very active and then Barbara became pregnant with our daughter. She took six months leave of absence and we had our daughter. About a month after she was born I was laid off from my job at San Jose water works. That was in about 1974 or 1975. I think it was payback for me being a union organizer.

They’ve laid me off with only eight weeks before I was eligible to claim my vested rights in my retirement plan. In those days it wasn’t much but it would help.

We threatened to go to court and so to save face they back – dated vested rights to match my time of service.

Prior to this there was an event called the Mullins trial. There were thirteen murders in Santa Cruz County. I was on the jury for that trial. So I missed work for six weeks.

As a result of that trial I get to know a lot of people in the community. When I got laid off I stayed home for two years with my daughter. Then, I started to work part time at orchard supply hardware. I started to pick up jobs on the side. I did your addition, plumbing, just about anything you can think of. I just did not want to work indoors.

I’ve been at it ever since.

Now I run a company called Bricmont Irrigation. I started by myself, with part time help and stayed true to my own self. I did the kind of work that I would do for myself. I’ve never paid for a day of advertising; I’ve built my business on word of mouth.

Today the work keeps coming in from clients that I had twenty years ago or more. I’ve kept improving my knowledge, and kept up with the technology that keeps creeping into irrigation systems.

Work wise, I do a lot of design and supervision. My body won’t cooperate anymore crawling under houses and digging ditches. Everything I do is below grade, so it’s always in the hole, on your stomach, or underground.

When my daughter was going to school I decided to get on the school board. I’ve been on the board for 23 years, with the exception of six years when my wife died and I didn’t serve. I’ve got all kinds of other activities to. I’m on the friends of the library board, that democratic central committee, the county trustee association.

Then way back when, around this very kitchen table, we started California Certified Organic the farmers. Now it’s a major organization. It’s a footprint of which I’m very proud.

My aunt first got me involved in the organic movement and I used to raise crops on her ranch. Rodale Press, the people who publish organic gardening magazine, had started an organization somewhere in the Midwest. They wanted us to start something out here.

When I was laid off from my job at the water works, I stayed home for two years to take care of my daughter. During this time I got the part – time job at orchard supply hardware store. Over the next fourteen years I built my business on the side and have been doing it ever since. I am in the irrigation business.

Right now I’d have to say that I am semi-retired. I visit sites, make suggestions, and pass information along to the younger guys. My daughter wasn’t into digging ditches. I don’t know why (laughter).