30 Stories
Turning Pro
In a move inspired by Erik Erikson's Eight Stages of Psychosocial Development, I recently began writing about the turning points in my life to gauge whether my time on earth made a difference to others.
Breaking Away
Upon moving to College Station in 2017, I thought, "Wouldn't it be interesting to explore the reasons behind Texas A&M's move to the Southeastern Conference?" When the Aggies departed the Big 12 in 2011, they ended their longstanding and historic rivalry with the Texas Longhorns. Why? Remarkably, I had the opportunity to write about just that–and shed new light on the matter–in my book Breaking Away.
We Will Find Stars
A carefully thought out and well-designed website should tell a good story. Beginning in 2015, I sought to honor my wife, a former astronaut, by having the observatory at my old high school named in her honor. Two years later, Nancy and I had raised enough money to provide significant updates to the venue, now called the Dr. Nancy Currie-Gregg Observatory at Enid High School. The project website played a key role in boosting awareness and earning the observatory a spot on the National Register of Historic Places.
Brazos Valley Prayer Breakfast
In the spring of 2023, I met longtime Bryan dermatologist Dr. Terry Jones. After told me about his desire to establish a meaningful prayer breakfast for the Brazos Valley region of Central Texas, I agreed to help him with the task. This video captures the highlights of what turned out to be a remarkable and blessed occasion attended by more than 600 people at the Legends Event Center in Bryan's Midtown Park.
Daughter of the Cumberland
Before becoming president of Texas A&M University, M. Katherine Banks first arrived at the school in 2011 as dean of the College of Engineering. A decade later, I profiled her journey from Kentucky coal-mining country to Aggieland in the book Breaking Away: How the Texas A&M University System Changed the Game.
RELLIS Recollections
Named for the core values of Texas A&M University–Respect, Excellence, Loyalty, Leadership, Integrity, and Selfless Service–the RELLIS Campus is home to not only a promising future, but also a proud past. On this website you'll find "recollections" of that past, first-person oral-history accounts that offer a look back at the site and its surroundings, as well as an assessment of the present environment and a look ahead at the location's promising future.
No Hard Feelings
This story appeared in the Edmond Sun newspaper the week before the October 19, 1985 Oklahoma-Miami football game in Norman, Oklahoma. The contest marked Miami Head Coach Jimmy Johnson’s return to the Sooner state after coaching the Oklahoma State Cowboys from 1979 to 1983. That return prompted some less-than-fond recollections for me.
Disaster City
The unspeakable tragedy of the Oklahoma City Bombing triggered the development of one of the world's most innovative disaster-preparedness training facilities near the Texas A&M University campus.
Life in the Late Innings
One of the many benefits of moving to the College Station area with my wife in 2017 was getting to see our friend, Wally Moon, much more frequently than when we lived in Houston.
Spending time with Wally became a valued part of my life's new routine after our move.
In the years in which I knew Wally, the passing of time definitely slowed him down a little. Despite that, Wally's mind remained sharp and his spirit willing. It was always a treat to pay a call on him at the retirement community where he lived out the last years of his life. It was there, near the end of 2017 and just a few months before his death in February of 2018, we hatched the idea for a newspaper column on the subject of growing old. We called it, "Life in the Late Innings."
Buzz Aldrin-A Homecoming
The second man to walk on the moon, former astronaut Buzz Aldrin, received his advanced fighter-pilot training at Bryan Air Force Base during the Korean War. His assignment there, in 1952, lasted only three months. More than 65 years later, Aldrin returned to share his "RELLIS Recollections" with me for my book of the same name.
Ruth The Truth
Around the Prairie ViewA&M campus, she’s known as “Ruth the Truth.” In the rarified air of American college and university administrators, Ruth Simmons is recognized as a pioneer and a trendsetter in higher education, having helmed the administration at both Smith College and Brown University. From 2017 to 2023, Simmons came out of retirement to serve as president of Prairie View A&M University, a Historically Black College located an hour's drive from her childhood home in Houston's Fifth Ward.
The Town That Trains Built
Navasota is a bustling and historic community located in the heart of Central Texas' Brazos Valley region. When I first visited the town, I became enamored with the many historic and stately homes located there. Thus, was born my photography-book project Celebrating Navasota. This story sprang from that effort and first appeared in the May/June 2021 issue of Insite Magazine.
The Virtual Chef
The COVID-19 pandemic forced Chef Tai Lee to embrace the online world to maintain a connection with his customers. In doing so, he expanded his culinary pursuits in unexpected and meaningful ways.
Pujols Family Foundation
In 2005, baseball superstar Albert Pujols and his wife Deidre started the Pujols Family Foundation in St. Louis to "honor God and strengthen families." In 2006, my company, Turn-Key Enterprises took over design and management of the foundation website. For the next five years, we worked closely with Albert, Deidre and their staff to promote the good works being done by the future baseball Hall-of-Famer.
The Hereafter
Descending through the clouds of a Southwest Airlines flight to Houston before Christmas in 2019, the view from my window seat was more than breathtaking. Hurriedly, I recorded the experience with my cell-phone camera. Later, I added a music bed from the artist Apex Twin, and the finished product spoke to me in an unexpectedly spiritual way. What does the video say to you?
When Greed Was Good
The subject of this feature-length story for the Texas A&M Mays School of Business is Associate Professor Michael Withers. The piece takes a look inside academic research beyond the laboratory.
Super Impact 17
Storytelling is critical in the effort to raise money for a worthy cause. Super Impact 17 was a fundraising campaign I put together for Rebuilding Together Houston. This is the campaign video I produced.
Whistler Bobsled
Given that my wife has flown into space four times, I knew she has an interest in "extreme experiences." Thus, it was no surprise when she climbed into a bobsled--with me behind her--at the Whistler Sliding Center, built for the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games. Here's the video of our run. And yes Nancy confirmed, we hit liftoff-like g-forces during the 80-mile-an-hour portion of our "slide."
The HP POD
Throughout my 20 years doing video production work, most of the stories I told were for corporate clients, like this video showcasing the HP POD. The video was commissioned by HP partner AMD, and was just one of nearly 20 video vignettes contained on an interactive DVD promoting the two companies partnership.
City StoriesTexas
Just as every person has a story, every town has countless stories that recount it’s heritage, personality and appeal. “City Stories” is a project which began in 2018 seeking to preserve the people, places and events that have shaped the Lone Star State. Through both images and words, “City Stories” endeavors to capture the essence of each town in a positive, uplifting and memorable form.
Prague
My first real pilgrimage in life was to visit the city of Prague and the land where my mother's people had once lived. To get there from my home at the time in Dallas, I made stops in both London and Vienna and my Prague story includes detailed accounts of the entirety of that memorable "European Vacation."
The Shining Moment
Villanova alum--and good friend--Tom Sanzone got Nancy and me nearly court-side tickets to the 2016 NCAA Final Four basketball tournament in our hometown of Houston. Villanova reached the national championship game against North Carolina, and the final moments of that contest, which I thought to preserve with my cell phone camera, made Final Four history. The screaming woman in the video is Tom's wife, Brenda.
A Passion for Parks
When Steve Beachy moved the College Station Parks & Recreation Department’s office to a new building at Central Park, he never dreamed the park would eventually be named in his honor.
CC the Cat
Thanks to the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biological Sciences, College Station has been the source of many important scientific discoveries, including producing the world’s first cloned cat.
Legendary Lawman
Robert E. “Bob” Wiatt was a larger-than-life FBI agent in Texas. Upon his retirement from the Bureau, he became director of Texas A&M’s police and security operations for 20 years.
"Dudes, Perfect!"
What do you get when you mix five Texas A&M students with a portable basketball goal and an uncommonly competitive nature? A future business empire called "Dude Perfect."
The House That Johnny Built
Some called it "The House That Johnny Built,” but Kyle Field's nearly half-billion-dollar redevelopment from 2013-2015 was more the doing of Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp than the Aggie’s Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Johnny Manziel.
The Young Elders
Young missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints regularly rotate through the College Station area spreading the faith, frequently on foot or by bicycle. The good they do is equaled only by the love in their hearts.
Why Not Just Pay The Players?
This story was written for my sports column in the Edmond Sun newspaper in 1985, long before NIL–standing for “name, image and likeness”–opened the doors to college athletes receiving compensation for their outside-the-classroom services.
Father’s Footsteps
This nostalgic homecoming reflects Mark Grissom's journey following in his father's fast-paced footsteps, blending the thrill of speed with the poignant legacy of a space-faring pioneer.
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