Hello my name is Graham and I am from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  I am originally from Quecreek, Pennsylvania.  That may sound familiar to you, as that is the small town in western Pennsylvania where nine coal miners became trapped when they mistakenly drilled into an abandoned mine shaft adjacent to their location.  The abandoned Saxmon mine, which had been filled with water for several years, quickly spilled water into the new mine, trapping the nine miners.  Miraculously, through a magnificent joint effort, they were rescued a few days later. 

Quecreek is located in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.  Which might also sound familiar.  Somerset County is where United Flight 93 and the heroes aboard met their demise on September 11, 2001.  Click the "Tribute" button below to go to a special tribute site.  I have recently visited the crash site, after a long period of putting it off.  To be honest, I have struggled at times with the idea of what happened there, and the fear that I had on that day.  It was difficult to go through that day, not knowing what had actually occurred, only hearing reports of a plane crashing in rural Somerset County. 

I am a 28 year old male, working in the civil engineering industry.  My academic endeavors had me starting out with the intent of acquiring a B.S. degree in marine biology.  Well, 10 years later, I now have two Associate of Science degrees and a Bachelor of Science degree.  All in engineering or engineering graphics.  I am currently a graduate student, working to complete my Master of Science degree in Engineering Management.

Being that Somerset County, is almost exclusively rural, many of my interests are related the outdoors.  Probably my most favorite outdoor activity, is trout fishing.  Going trout fishing with my father is one of my oldest memories.  Even to this day, there is a special place inside me for Pennsylvania trout fishing.  Working in the civil engineering industry, I hope to assist all I can in the preservation of Pennsylvania's cold-water fishing habitats.

While I do like many outdoor activities, I also like many other things as well.  I enjoy Maryland for the past ten years, and I still enjoy it very much there.

All in all, I would like to consider myself to be a reasonably educated and well-rounded individual.  I certainly am capable of some pretty stupid things.  Nevertheless, I think everybody's capable of that.