Autobiography

By Mike Dawson

Highly compressed life story

I was born in Newark, NJ, and grew up in Rutherford, NJ, in view of what is now Giants Stadium and the Manhattan skyline. I attended Rutherford public schools, graduating in 1963.

I attended Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ, studying mechanical engineering. On graduation day in 1967, I became the first college graduate on either side of my family.

I worked as an engineer in the aerospace, process machinery, and cable TV industries. In cable, I was the Vice President "in-charge-of-what-needed-doing", building a $1 million company into a $60 million company.

When I retired, I decided to collect skills. I've remodeled two houses, and am working on a third. I cook every meal for my wife and me, and enjoy gardening a lot. I restored my 1965 Corvette, and now ride around on nice days. I just finished a successful petition drive in the City of Monterey, and have decided (with my wife's help) to run for Mayor.

Before settling in Monterey, I lived and worked in many other places, including New Jersey, Texas, North Carolina, Los Angeles, San Diego, Palo Alto, and Cupertino. I'm a long-time Monterey resident, having lived in the city for 20 years, first in Old Town Monterey, and now in the historic Dormody House in Alta Mesa.

I bring management and engineering skills, a deep and varied set of life experiences, and lots of energy and drive to any project I undertake. I'll use them all as Mayor of Monterey.