About Me

Born in Manhattan (NYC, not Kansas) in 1948 and raised in the 'burbs on Long Island, NY.

I have one remaining sister, Ellen. My younger sister Ann died in 2001. Had a great childhood in West Hempstead, NY.

I did the Catholic-school thing from grades 3 through 12, and was taught by the "good Sisters and Brothers" (yes, many were good). It was fun - I got an excellent education and also learned how to question/circumvent authority. Went to Sacred Heart Seminary (now defunct) in Hempstead (famous alum: Sean Hannity) and Chaminade High School in Mineola (famous alum: Bill O'Reilly).

After those formative years, I forsook Catholic education and went to college in Virginia at The College of William and Mary. I spent a lot of time at the campus radio station and thought seriously about becoming a DJ but majored in geology instead. Smart move...

After that, it was "out West" to graduate school (hydrology, math minor) at the University of Arizona. Now that transformation to a "Westerner" did take, and I have lived in the West (AZ, NV, CA, NM, and now OR) almost continuously since 1970 (one year in Atlanta in 1983-84). I like to think of myself as an academic (Desert Research Institute, University of New Mexico, Oregon State University) with a pragmatic orientation.

I now live in Corvallis, OR, work at Oregon State University, where I direct the Institute for Water and Watersheds (water.oregonstate.edu) and am Professor of Geosciences. I have been married to Mary Frances since 1993. She is quite extraordinary, an accomplished equestrienne, who adeptly manages Intel's corporate libraries.

I also founded and run a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, the Ann Campana Judge Foundation (www.acjfoundation.org), which is devoted to undertaking and funding projects related to water, health, and sanitation in developing countries. It is dedicated to the memory of my late younger sister Ann, who was murdered on September 11, 2001 (American Airlines flight 77, which was crashed into the Pentagon).

In recent (since about 1998) years I have discovered the joys of helping those less fortunate in developing countries, mainly through village-scale water and sanitation projects.

I am an inveterate, unrepentant, water wonk.

I am also President-for-Life and Supreme High Armed Forces Commander of the Republic of Campanastan.