Jim Perkins was born in Rhodesville, Alabama. He attended Rhodesville Grammar School and then Waterlou High School, where he met Mildred, the woman who he would eventually marry.
Jim was drafted into the military in 1951, during the height of the Korean War. He enlisted in the Air Force. He spent about 4 years in Illinois before being deployed to Japan, where he worked in the air traffic control tower. He spent some time in Georgia before again going overseas, this time to Turkey. By this time Jim was married and had children, and he took his family with him to the Middle East. His 2 kids went to school in Turkey and became fluent in Turkish. Jim also spent a year in Vietnam, working in the Air Traffic Regulation Center there.
Listen to Jim as he shares with us his very interesting life story.
