Jim Woodruff - 1963
Bio & Picture from 40th Reunion
Jim's picture collection for the 50th Reunion













 
 





Jim Woodruff - 2003-09-04

 
Although my parents moved to Columbia in 1938 when my father joined the faculty at MU, they spent WWII at Wright Field, Dayton, OH where my father was a civilian electronics technician.  As a result, I was born in Dayton, OH instead of Columbia.  My brother, Bob, is two years younger and is a member of the Hickman class of 1965.  I remember going to kindergarten for half a year in the basement of the Calvary Baptist Church before the brand new West Boulevard Elementary School was opened in 1950 (??).

After graduating from Hickman, I went to college at MU, starting out in electrical engineering and switching to mechanical engineering after the revelation of my first EE class.  When I graduated in February 1968, I joined the air force and got a commission through Officer Training School in May 1968.  My first assignment was to Eglin AFB, FL (Fort Walton Beach).  Next was Los Angeles Air Force Station, then the 44th Strategic Missile Wing, Ellsworth AFB, SD (Rapid City), HQ SAC, Offutt AFB, NE (Omaha), and finally Hill AFB, UT (Ogden), where I retired in March of 1988.  At my first assignment I was involved in munitions testing and the rest of my career revolved around intercontinental ballistic missiles (mostly Minuteman).

Using my GI bill I got a masters degree from the University of Utah in ergonomics and safety.  Then I decided to get into the high performance auto parts business where I have violated most of the principles I learned in graduate school.

Hobbies include photography, computers, and cars.  I have been involved in autocross competition for 30 years and a Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) member for 23 years.
 

 

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