|
Erasing my misconception that I knew what adventure was all about, my daughter Sophie arrived in January 2009.
Her mom Dana and I were married in September 2007, making these two lovely ladies the best parts about
returning to Mississippi, by far. They are my biggest supporters in my latest endeavor, a company I
founded with my friend Clark Love (our second together),
Iron View Capital.
|
|
The reason for my return to my home state of Mississippi was to be
the Chief Technology Officer for SmartSynch,
the leading provider of wireless communication technology to the electric utility industry.
It gave me a chance to learn many new things in a interesting new field, import my expertise from
California, and contribute to my community.
|
|
For a little while, I was trying to keep myself crazy by working two
full-time jobs -- with the MLB
Company to introduce their autonomous
airplanes to a wider market, and as a founder of a non-profit social venture
named LumiMap which
brought the latest in mapping technology to
aid in disaster relief efforts. Rather than go into detail about them,
I'll suggest that you just go to their websites.
|
|
I completed my Ph.D. in 2003 in
Aeronautics and Astronautics at Stanford University,
working in the Aerospace Robotics Laboratory.
My research into the operation of multiple robots or unmanned vehicles evolved
from work with the
HUMMINGBIRD Autonomous Helicopter Project.
|
|
In 2000 I started a company with my best friend Clark Love. The company,
Forest One was a groundbreaking remote sensing and geospatial technology
for the forest products industry. Clark did a great job as its CEO as it transformed into
Lanworth and we have since exited the business.
|
|
Before Stanford, I went to the University of Mississippi
where I received my Bachelor's Degree in
Mechanical Engineering. I was involved in student government there and became a member of
Eta Chapter
of the Sigma Chi
Fraternity. While I was at Ole Miss, I spent a semester at Moscow State
University where I studied Russian, made some
very good friends, and had many once-in-a-lifetime experiences.
|
|
I will drop anything to play sports, particularly basketball and golf, or watch any game
involving an Ole Miss team.
In 1995 the FAA saw fit
to give me a private pilot license, so I like any chance to take a
Cessna 172 or Cherokee Warrior for a spin. I also enjoy scuba diving and snow skiing,
but unfortunately these hobbies involve more wherewithal and large blocks of time than I
currently have available. To make sure I stay busy, I sing bass in
the choir at my church after getting tuned
back in while in California.
|
|
My parents, Frank & Ann Jones, still live where I grew up -- Richton, Mississippi, a town of
1000 people that was a really nice place to be a kid.
The older of my two "little" brothers,
John, is a family practice physician in Indianola, Mississippi now that
he is done with medical school at the University of Mississippi
Medical Center, residency at the University of Alabama - Huntsville, and some time
serving abroad at
African Bible College in Malawi. He has been all over the place -- in
seminary, at Desire Street Ministries
in New Orleans, and dining among dead animals,
learning massage, and hunting cobras. However, the much more exciting
news for John is that he and his wife Emily Crow from Fort Payne, Alabama now have four children -- Sam, Ford, Alice Ann, and Ruthie.
The youngest of the clan, Walter, is taking the
concepts of charm, personality, and good old-fashioned cheesemaking to
new heights. Walter graduated from the University of Mississippi and was subsequently
able to talk the lovely and talented Lauren Noel of Memphis, Tennessee to marry him. They now live in Fort Worth, Texas,
doing who-knows-what as we speak. Walt has wrapped up this generation of Sigma Chis at Ole Miss (who all followed our dad),
and we would say he's following in our footsteps -- if he weren't doing a bunch of other things better than the rest of us ever could.
|