Thomas J AikenAfter high school, Tom earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Colorado State University in 1964. At that same time he was also commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Army. Within six months of entering the Army, Tom was elected to command a military detachment of forty five men and was sent to the Central Highlands in Vietnam. The unit was part of the Military Assistance Command (MAC-V) and was initially attached to the 5th Special Forces in Nha Trang, then with the 101st Airborne at An Khe, where they saw action in Operation Gibraltar. They also saw action when the unit was attached to the Korean Marine "White Horse" division that was deployed throughout the Central Highlands. In 1967 Tom took the Federal Service Entrance Exam and was eventually offered a job with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation as a budget analyst in the Denver Office of Chief Engineer. In 1972, he was selected to head the Administrative Division at the Bureau's Planning Office in Durango, Colorado. After two years, Tom was promoted again to head the Administrative Division at the Auburn Dam Construction Office in Auburn, California. He went on from there to the Bureau s Regional Office in Sacramento where he served first as the Programs and Budget Division Chief and then as Assistant Regional Director. In 1993 Tom received his final career assignment as Area Manager for the newly formed Central California Area Office headquartered in Folsom, California. Tom received many honors throughout his career including the prestigious Department of Interior Meritorious Service Award presented by Secretary of the Interior William Clark, Who s Who in Government Service, the National Administrative Support Units Annual Award for Executive Leadership to name a few. Senator Barbara Boxer presented him with a flag that had been flown over the Nation's Capital for excellence of service in 1998 and Congressman Doug Ose presented him with the same honor when Tom retired in 2003. Ose also presented him with a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition. Congressman John Doolittle presented Tom with a one page write-up in the November 23, 2003, Congressional Record during his keynote speech at Tom s retirement party. Tom has always had a strong sense of community involvement, over the years he coached Little League, Babe Ruth Baseball and Youth Soccer teams. Tom has donated over 11 gallons of blood and when in Auburn, California, he joined his fellow Lions Club members in tutoring kids at the Boys and Girls Club. Throughout his life, Tom has pursued art and is a much awarded painter. His paintings have received numerous first place awards including two "Best of Show" awards and a "Judges Award" for special merit. Tom paints primarily in oils; he paints portraits, landscapes, seascapes, western themes and anything else that inspires him. Tom has two publications in the Library of Congress. First is an Oral History of the Bureau of Reclamation and the second is "Memoirs of a Bureau Curmudgeon: Unabridged Version Politically Incorrect published in the title Reclamation Managing Water in the West." Tom and his wife Linda live in Coquille, OR. Tom with his first wife, Mary, have a daughter Me'Shay and son-in-law Mike living near Auburn and a son Joe and daughter-in-law Amy living in Lincoln, CA. Stepdaughter Lisa and her husband John also live in Lincoln. Stepdaughter Jenny and husband Marco live in Auburn. Me'Shay has three sons, Aaron, Mitchel and Morgan. Lisa has three daughters, Tayler, Kylie and Allison. In 2005, Tom was selected to the Colorado Springs/Palmer High School Hall of Fame for career achievements. Read More Read Less