David Ford at the MIU MakerSpace
With fellow students and faculty member Mark Stimson in the global solutions class
During an open house at the Oasis greenhouse
At the Chicago Marathon
MIU student David Ford is a paramedic who moved to Fairfield five years ago with his wife and three children. Last year, after 20 years in the health care field, he decided to make a career change and study sustainable living. When he learned that MIU had a degree program in sustainable living, he visited campus, talked to some of the students, and two weeks later enrolled.
David is a man of many talents and interests. He enjoys woodworking and metalworking and makes custom knives, axes, and jewelry, as well as homeopathic skin care products for men, which he sells on his website Mad Man Essentials.
In addition to studying full time, David runs the MIU MakerSpace workshop and helps maintain a local greenhouse, which he and his classmates restored and began operating during a three-month class in global solutions.
As a combat veteran of the US Navy, David had learned a form of guided meditation to help with his insomnia. Learning the Transcendental Meditation® technique has stabilized his life and changed the atmosphere of his home. “One of the first things I noticed was how TM affected my family life,” he said. “My kids can pick up on my anxiety, but with TM I don’t bring it home. My house is more tranquil and my kids are more relaxed.”
David doesn’t like to let limitations discourage him from taking on new challenges. Even though he describes himself as overweight and having a bad knee, last October he finished the Chicago Marathon with only five months of training. “You can always find a way of doing something,” he said.
Among David’s many interests are off-grid building, solar and wind energy, and tiny homes. He is considering a business idea for building small, sustainable homes for the local community.