Jake Laughlin Update

Ok. Here is my shot at an update. Two weeks after we graduated from high school, I headed up to West Point Military Academy. I spent the summer there going through basic training, until the academic year started in September '93. I spent the next 4 years there, and rarely got the chance to come home to Corinth except for times like Thanksgiving and Christmas. I did, however, go to Ole Miss for spring break every year, and hang out with Brett and David. I certainly lived vicariously through them one week out of the year! In May of '93, I graduated from West Point as a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Army.

I spent the summer of '93 in Corinth, trying to catch up with as many people as possible. I also got to experience the Slugburger Festival...what a riot!! In August of '93 I packed up my car and drove to Ft. Sill, Oklahoma to attend the Artillery Officer Basic Course. That lasted 8 months, and then I was attached to a unit at Ft. Sill where I spent the next 3 years as an Artillery Fire Direction Officer and Platoon Leader. I got out of the Army in April of '96 and moved to Dallas, TX, to work for Elk Corporation. I was in Elk's sales training program until October of '96, when I was transferred to Atlanta. And I've been here in Atlanta every since.

I stayed with Elk for a few years, but decided that technology was of more interest to me. So I left Elk to work for MCI, and have also worked in sales and business development capacities at companies like Inflow, Universal Electronics, and EnfoTrust. I'm now in business development for a small software company based out of Sterling, VA.

Back in 1999, I was at a party with some friends (we actually crashed the party...) and met a really nice girl named Hadley Baur who had just moved to Atlanta from St. Louis. She played field hockey for the University of Virginia, was really laid-back, and just a really cool girl. Unfortunately, she was at the party with her boyfriend, so despite hitting it off with her, I struck out. Over the next couple of years, I continued to run into her out and about, and finally in September of '01 we went out on a date. And the rest is history. We got married in Montana in September of '04.

To make life even more exciting and interesting, Hadley and I just had our first child, a baby girl named Sloane, on December 13th, 2006. She is the light of my life, and definitely a "daddy's girl." After years of ranting and raving about never having nor wanting kids, I can't imagine my life without her, and now I want more!!

In terms of hobbies, I'm a music fanatic (over 7,000 albums and counting...), I love fly fishing, and I love to cook (I'd starve if I didn't, as Hadley does NOT cook!). If any of you are ever in the Atlanta area, please give me a call and we'll have you over for dinner and drinks. In fact, Bobby Burns and his wife were in town a few weeks ago, and we had them over for dinner, and it was a blast!!

I hope everyone is doing well, and I look foward to catching up with everyone!!