Gordon HaitWindows LAN Analyst
Gordon Hait has tried upstate New York, Arizona, and Alaska. None of them seemed to fit as well as Western Washington. Of course, it helps to have fallen in love with a woman from Olympia and to have acquired the stability that comes with a family. No doubt working with technology at PLU rather than blowing things up for a living lends a certain measure of comfort. And did we mention the competitive show dogs?
Hobart, in rural upstate New York, is where Gordon grew up. One of around 500 people in Hobart at the time, Gordon was well into a career of carpentry when he visited a friend in Arizona. When he returned home, Hobart just didn't seem the same. At that point Gordon realized Hobart and building custom homes wasn't his future, but he didn't know just where or what he wanted to be, so he came out to Western Washington with eight friends. Certainly life was more interesting as a heavy equipment operator and powderman for Simpson Lumber in Shelton, but he still had some wanderlust so he gave Alaska a try as a construction journeyman, driller, and powerderman. He finally found the missing element in his life the source of stability and focus when he met his wife in Olympia.
Nadine, who grew up in Olympia and whose family still lives there, has also traveled a good bit and has tried out a variety of paths. She attended dance schools in New York and was on track to become a professional dancer when injuries set in to prevent it. She's since acquired degrees in political science, fashion design, and paralegal work, and now she's working on an MBA at PLU. Currently a full-time background researcher for state license applications, Nadine plans to get into the business end of the larger technology world when she graduates in June, 2003.
Meanwhile, after meeting Nadine, Gordon began working for the State Department of Fisheries gathering data as a temporary employee, then began installing data network cable for state agencies and political offices. That lead to a technical certification from Clover Park and a position at PLU in 1992.
Together Gordon and Nadine have a 13-year-old daughter, Dakota, who is a competitive swimmer for the Parkland-Spanaway swim team. (Her specialty is everything except the butterfly!) When she was three and the family was looking for a dog, a Rotweiler bit Dakota in the face. Traumatic at the time, of course, but it is one of the great tragedy-into-joy stories. After healing up and in order to get Dakota past a lingering fear of dogs, the family began attending local dog shows to decide which breed of dog they wanted to get. To make a long story short, they were smitten with the fun, challenge, and culture of showing dogs. The Haits now have a seven-year-old Whippet retired from showing; a Basenji, Rev, who recently showed at Westminster (you can see him at http://www.ktcampbell.com/taji/family_tree_fs.html),and two Greyhounds who show as well, one of which was recently among the finalists for a best-in-show.
Why show dogs, and why as extensively as the Haits? Gordon says they enjoy the social aspects of it all, and they do enjoy the competition. But one suspects its a way to continue seeing the world and a way to satisfy a lingering wanderlust all the better indulged with the family and pets one loves.