YESTER-KNIGHTS

The first part of my book is about growing up in South Carolina. Included are some of the adventures and misadventures of my youth. I grew up in the small rural town of Harleyville, which is about 40 miles from Charleston, SC. My young life was strongly influenced by my parents, grandparents, grammar school and Sunday school teachers. I was seven or eight years old before I saw my first television program, so we played a lot of outdoor sports and games. It was lots of fun going to a small school and growing up around my grandparent’s dairy farm. Hunting, cars, sports, and girls took priority over studying when I was in high school. College didn’t seem the right thing for me when I graduated, so I joined the Army and became a paratrooper. The Army put some discipline and maturity in my life, but after three years of military service, I was ready for college. However, I started working for the Federal Government at the beginning of my senior year and had to put completing my degree on hold for a few years. The book is also about my wife, my children and some of the activities that are a part of my life. One chapter is about stories that my father told me about World War II. It finishes with some of the entries from the diary that he kept during that time of his life. The second part of the book is about my career with the U. S. Customs Service and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. I started my career in 1971 as a Sky Marshall. When the government went to a sterile concourse concept, the Sky Marshals were transferred to other jobs within the federal government. When I was transferred to Savannah, I started the second part of my career as a Customs Patrol Officer. The Patrol Division was established in 1973 as a highly trained drug interdiction unit. The unit’s primary responsibility was to stop the flow of illegal drugs and narcotics entering the United States. Commissioner William Von Raab started phasing out the Patrol in the mid 1980s. At that time, I was transitioned to a position as a Customs Special Agent where I investigated other violations of the Custom laws, such as fraud and child pornography. I finished my career with Customs as a firearms and use of force trainer and supervisor with the Customs National Firearms Program Staff at Fort Benning, Georgia. My positions with the U.S. Customs Service were interesting and challenging. I had an action packed job that I still miss today. After I retired, I took a contract job as an instructor with the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center at Glynco, Georgia, teaching firearms and the use of force. It is a rewarding job that I hope I can continue for several more years.