This is the story of Joel Dickinson. He’s not rich. He’s not famous. He’s made a lot of the same choices and mistakes as the majority of us in our youth. But what makes Joel’s story so important is that when he realized he wasn’t happy with his situation, he did something about it.

Here’s Joel’s story in his own words…

I ended up going to the bar and drinking beer instead of studying. I was immature and not ready for school at that point. It was a natural progression to go from high school to college because all my friends were doing it. I didn’t appreciate what I had at the time.

Looking back, I regret it. I look at all these young engineers that I work with now that go straight through school and I think, ‘Man. You’ve got so many more opportunities than I had because you did that.’

I didn’t plan on going back. I always wanted to, but I didn’t think that was going to happen. It wasn’t until I think I realized that it was dangerous work, you’re on the road at night, you work weekends, you don’t go home right away. So I finally said, ‘Forget it. I’m going to quit and go back to school.’

That was very scary. I’m 32 years old and was talking to my wife about how I could start the process. I laugh now about it because I told my friends from high school about my decision to go back and pursue engineering. They’re were like, ‘Yeah right. And I’m going to fly to the moon.’

In high school, it was fairly easy for me. But I didn’t do very well. I was always middle of my class. But once you’re older, that’s when you look back and apply yourself. It was very rewarding going back. Very rewarding.

When I went back, I thought I was going to pursue civil engineering. Then, when I got into the engineering classes, I realized all the engineers take the same math. So I said, ‘Well heck. I enjoy chemistry. I might as well do chemical engineering.’

One thing that I think is kind of cool about what I’ve ended up doing is that I don’t think anyone should ever count themselves out. It’s never too late to go back to school. If you don’t like what you’re doing, change it.

My name is Miguel Lopez a senior at Peoria High School. I wish to be a police officer some day and was able to participate in the City of Peoria Police Citizen’s Academy. At graduation, I had the privilege of receiving my certificate from the Chief of Police, Larry Ratcliff. I decided that he would be a great person to interview for my Pursue the Passion Interview.

How would you describe your job?

A lot of management, budgeting key rules: Leader (guiding)

What kind of environment do you experience within your company and your job?

Dealing with fighting crime and making the community safe. Mainly dealing with groups of people.

What other departments depend on you to do their work and who do you depend on?

The fire departments, over lapping with them. I work with a lot of the departments in the cities ex: courts, jails, etc.

What are you most proud of about your work?

The police department, the people who work here, promote and train.

What educational background do you need for your job?

Minimum is a college degree, high school diploma (the higher the education = a plus). In the future they will be asking for bachelor’s degrees.

How much do you get paid a year?

$ 43,920 yearly and in 2007 ($78,350)

How many jobs are there?

861,000 police and detectives in 2006 and 79% work for local governments. They work mainly in cities and towns with more than 25,000 people.

Business Name: Peoria Police Department Career Area: Police Chief

Andrew Harrington attended the game design program at Collins College. After just a few months Andrew began to discover his talents and planned on how to use his new-found skills to get where he wanted to be. Andrew spent many late nights and weekends doing tutorials and experimenting to develop his talents and set him-self apart from the rest.

Andrew realized that he could go to work with his skills, so he contacted Career Services at Collins College and got started. After revising his resume numerous times and working closely with his advisors Andrew landed an internship with liquid Entertainment, a game development company in Pasadena, Calif. This internship allowed Andrew to further develop his skills and to make key industry contacts, which led him to where he is working now.

Andrew currently works as an Associate Artist for Big Bang Entertainment. Andrew absolutely loves his job and where he is in life and it is all because he took the time to develop the necessary skills that would prepare him to pursue his passion. Now go PURSUE THE PASSION!!!

My name is Adam Hernandez and currently a senior at Peoria High School. I had the pleasure of meeting Kyle Lauing at DeVry Day on October 10, 2008. He seems like a great person. He is the Instructor of The Game and Simulation course at DeVry University, Phoenix.

1) What is your title/position?

Instructor in Game and Simulation Programming for DeVry University

2) How long have you been employed with this firm?

18 months

3) What are your specific job responsibilities?

Teaching students topics of game development including: Data Structures, Artificial Intelligence, Level and Modification Design,DirectX, software engineering principles, and game engine design.

4) What do you like about your job?

Teaching students topics that I also have a passion for is very fun and rewarding.

5) What do you dislike about your job?

Nothing really.

6) How would you describe your job?

Harder than it seems from the students perspectives, but very fun and rewarding.

7) What kind of environments do you experience within your company and your job?

Teaching is a kind of laid back environment compared to the gaming industry which is very fast paced and long hours.

What are you most proud of about your work?

Teaching students how to make video games for a living and seeing them have fun doing it as well.

9) What educational background do you need for your job?

Generally a Master’s Degree in the topic you are teaching.

10) How long have you been interested in Game Programming?

For about 8 years now.

11) What inspired you to become a Game Programmer?

Being an avid gamer myself and having a passion to want to create them myself.

12) What advice do you have to offer a person starting in this field?

It takes a lot of long, difficult, and focused work, but having a game to show people is a really fun feeling because most people have no idea how to accomplish that.

My name is Matthew Wilson and I am currently a senior at Peoria High School. I have an interest in acting and the theater. As I deaf student, I know that I will have to work hard and that is just what my interviewer, Ron Nix, said to me.

I interviewed with a retired stuntman/actor named Ron Nix. Mr. Nix has had over forty years experience in all phases of movie production such as stuntman, student coordinator, assistant director, set design, and special effects. I had a lot of questions for Ron Nix about his work/life.

Mr. Nix is proud of his work. Ron starred in movies such as “Natural Born Killers”, “White Line Fever”, “Raising Arizona”, “Trial of Billy Jack”, “Charro”, and “Murphy’s Romance” and television series such as “Young Riders”, “Bonanza”, “High Chaparral”, and “Death Valley Days.” Most experience has been in western films but he has had experience with comedy before too, which involved some stunt work. He said that some scenes look real but they are not. He explained that when he was doing the stunts that he actually did them while doubling the real actor so the actor did not get hurt. He explained how that most stunts are done with technology making them look real. Ron has done many stunt works for the actors and worked with such actors as Elvis Presley, Jan Michael Vincent, Marty Robbins, Bill Cosby, Mickey Rooney, and Michael Landon. He does enjoy working with the famous actors.

When he isn’t doing stunt work, he focuses on designing and building western towns to be used for film productions or other projects. He actually owns his own western film location in northwest Phoenix where hundreds of movies and commercials have been created and filmed there.

After we spoke about his work I asked him what I needed to do in order to be in the movies or theater. Ron said deaf people might have communication problems with the movie or play directors. He told me he worked with a deaf actor in television series called “Bonanza”, that was a popular western television series. He gave me lots of advice. He also told me how to get an agent to help me become a better actor.

Ron Nix is a great man once you get to know him. He is a real cowboy. He is funny and nice too. He told me much about his experience work with famous actors and the movies. I enjoyed our visit.

My name is Katherine Tiller from Peoria High School and I did an interveiw with Mr. Charles Breakiron, a 3D animator. Charlie Breakiron owns and operates BREAKIRON Animation & Design, LLC delivering high-end 3-D graphics and animation using the top-performing Softimage animation solutions. Either on site or working remotely, industry-savvy and experienced, 16-year veteran Breakiron has served leading graphics houses such as: Omation Studios (feature film Barn Yard); Fox Animation Studios (feature film Titan AE); Quiet Man in New York (AT&T, Disney); Janimation in Dallas (new Barney show, K-Mart); Metropolitan Audio-Visual (Diamondback World Series logo effects) and more. Pixel Liberation Front (PLF) hired Breakiron for a cinematic promoting the 3-D action/adventure game Medal of Honor. Breakiron performs well under pressure - his high-quality work and outstanding creativity are critical assets to any production team. For additional information and samples, please visit http://www.breakiron.com.

1) What is your name?

Charlie Breakiron or “Brecheisen” I was born in Darmstadt Germany and this is a direct translation.

2) What is your title/position?

3D Animator/FX Artist - Owner of BREAKIRON Animation & Design, LLC

3) Where do you work?

My home office in Raleigh, North Carolina.

4) How long have you been employed with this firm?

I started this business in 2000 so, 8 years as an independent business owner.

5) What are your specific job responsibilities?

Effects for Broadcast and Film Industries, Team Planning and Leadership, Pre-Viz and Shot Planning, Texturing, Lighting and Rendering.

6) What are the qualifications for your positon?

No the basics for Illustration, Design, 3D Modeling, Texturing, Lighting, Rendering and managing business affairs.

7) What do you like about your job?

As a 3D Animator, I satisfy most of my creative needs.

What do you dislike about your job?

Extremely long hours but, when you are passionate about your work, it’s much easier to take the long hours.

9) What advice do you have to offer a person starting in this field?

Find what you can do for 18 hours a day for the rest of your life and will not get bored doing it. Work becomes play and you will be happy and successful.

Pursue the Passion Interviewed Tommy Thwaites in Denver, Colorado in front of a live student audience. Tommy is the co-owner and President of Coda Coffee, a coffee wholesale company he operates with his brother Tim. In this video Tommy speaks about his journey in the coffee industry and the risks he took to preserve his passion.

I’ve been involved in coffee for the last fourteen years. I’m 32 now and I started when I was 18 years old.

In high school I was a mechanic. I worked on lawnmowers, chainsaws, that kind of thing. I was dirty every day of my life. It was a good job. Paid well for high school. I could go out on weekends, put gas in my car…the core essentials when you’re 17 years old. But I was just tired of getting dirty.

My friend started a coffee business. He said if you’re tired of being dirty every day, why don’t you help us out? It’s a lot of fun. You can sweep floors, fill orders, and just go from there. My parents, I remember my mom and dad saying I was crazy and I shouldn’t do it. I had a decent paying job. It was steady. They told me not to go into coffee because it was risky and it was going to ruin paying for college and that kind of stuff.

We were 800 square feet in a fruit stand next to their dad’s gas station. Eight and a half years later when I left that company we were 8,000 square feet, $15 million in sales a year. My title was Executive Vice President.

My parents came full circle and actually invested their 401(k) in our company. My dad, who hangs out at the office quite a bit to drink coffee, read the paper, and be in the way for the most part, will tell that story to anyone who is willing to listen. My dad hated at least 15 years of work. He was like, ‘If you guys can do something you enjoy, and not be where I was at after those 15 years, I’m all about supporting it.’

Looking back, I have no reservations. It’s been a total blessing. I love every day of it. But it hasn’t been easy. It hasn’t been this grand cake walk where we’re making millions of dollars or whatever. This is hard work. The money will come is kind of our mantra right now.

My name is Kenry Robinson, a senior at Peoria High School. My Pursue the Passion interview was with Dr. Nate Miller, a physician from the Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, Washington. The medical center is located on the Ft. Lewis Army Base.

What is your name and title?

Nate Miller, MD, CPT, USA, MC

How long have you been employed with this firm?

3 years

What are your specific job responsibilities?

I see patients in outpatient clinic 1 to 3 days a week. These consist of acute illness appointments and well health check up appointments. I operate 1 to 3 times a week. I also have weekly responsibilities on the labor and delivery unit managing patients in labor, attending their deliveries and performing surgeries like c-sections.

What are the qualifications for your position?

Bachelor of Arts/Science and Medical School

What do you like about your job?

Seeing people at their very best and very worst with the ability to provide necessary care for them in those times. It is a unique experience for patients to let complete strangers (physicians/ nurses/etc) provide care for them. I enjoy the people I work with in that we work as teams for the common good of others. One of the other things I enjoy about my job as an Active Duty Army Physician is having the blessing of taking care of our nation’s finest and their loved ones as they continue to do what is asked of them.

What do you dislike about your job?

Personal sacrifices of time with family and friends. Patients who choose to not take care of themselves.

Russ Haan is the owner and founder of After Hours Creative. For over twenty years Russ and his team of creative professionals have been providing innovative advertising campaigns for such impressive clients as Target, Pepsi and Intel. Staying in business for 20 years in this business requires a lot of hard work and creativity. After Hours Creative has elevated themselves to the top tier in their industry by never settling for less than the best. By continuously researching their clientele and getting to know them like they know themselves, After Hours Creative is able to give it’s clients every competitive advantage possible.

The team, at After Hours Creative, has raised the bar by never presenting anything short of amazing and always thinking outside the collective box in terms of their creative concepts. For more information about Russ and his team or to contact After Hours Creative check out Russ’ profile on linked in @ http://www.linkedin.com/pub/2/ab8/7ab.

Thanks for viewing my video and we look forward to continuing to provide users with content for a long time to come.

Trevor Hill is the Senior Graphic Designer at After Hours Creative. Trevor began his career in Graphic Design doing freelance work after attending college for Graphic Design. From an early age Trevor wanted to design shoes for Nike. This passion for design led Trevor to pursue his passion and landed him a really cool job doing what he loves.

As the lead designer at After Hours Creative, Trevor enjoys a significant measure of creative freedom and input (not to mention he shows up to work in jeans and a t-shirt.) In Trevors words “I can draw a picture better than I can explain it.” So, if you can draw a picture better than you can explain it, you just might want to check into a career in Graphic Design.

Thanks for checking out our video, tell us what you think by emailing me at b.hugaboom@gmail.com.