1970s and 1980s

Highlights:

My older cousin, Ron Shunk, made it possible for me to journey to and stay in Tucson. (Ron and his family moved there two years earlier because of Ron's health.)
Fell in love with Tucson sunsets, its desert, and mountains. Seeing an Arizona sunset gives me hope there will always be a tomorrow. It also reminds me to find the beauty in any moment and live it fully and unconditionally.
Greatest lessson to learn once "on my own": Self-management, using my time and energy wisely.
First impression(s) of the University of Arizona: "It's party time!" and "How can a place have so many beautiful women?"
First major at the UA: Girls! (Seriously, it was Anthropology.)
Most fun times in Tucson: Hanging out with my roommate Derk Janssen (from Seal Beach, CA), dancing the night away with pretty girls at the Dunes Nightclub.
Wildest adventure during the Tucson years: Doing "Rocky Point" in Mexico on the Gulf of California. (Stoned out of our minds and partying all night and all day.)
Most serious female relationship in Tucson: Sally Gifford (my first wife), whom I met in a first year French class and three years later we were married in Cleveland, her home.
Sally was a true humanitarian type. She was a social activist and loved working with and helping people. These were signs of her career to come. Justice was a defining issue for Sally. Her mother described her as having an "over-developed sense of justice."
Biggest lesson learned from the Tucson days: You can't burn the candle on both ends and in the middle and expect to have any candle left for later. (I "burned out" in 1971, got sick with "mono," and had to withdraw from school because of too much of everything thing too fast.)
Moved to Cleveland in March 1972. Sally's parents (Roger and Betty Gifford) gave me a place to stay until Sally and I moved into our own place (a small apartment in the Little Italy neighborhood of Cleveland.)
Sally encouraged me to find myself and make friends with myself. This was very important for me because I grew up thinking that I had to be what and who others expected me to be.
Enrolled at Cleveland State University (CSU) in 1972 because that is all I could afford. CSU turned out to be an outstanding experience for me. Graduated in 1975 with a 3.62 GPA with a major in Anthropology and a minor in Social Sciences.
My CSU Anthro professors (John Blank, Will Sibley, and Doug McKenzie) took a major personal interest in me and my studies. They entrusted me with the responsibility to serve as a supervisor on the Riverview Woodlands Indian Archeological Dig in Jaite, Ohio. My teachers trust helped me to trust myself.
Fondest memories of CSU: Sitting in the student lounge and talking with my classmates about the "big issues" in life, like where we all came from.
Worst memories associated with CSU: Taking the bus to and from CSU downtown campus in the dead of winter.
Sally Gifford and I were married in December 1972 right after Christmas. We were married for 15 years until 1987 when we agreed to divorce.
Most traumatic event during my CSU college days: Being in a serious auto accident in Brecksville, Ohio less than 1/4 mile from my in-laws' home. (This was a crucial turning point in my life emotionally and otherwise. It caused me to confront the "fear" within me. It was a wake-up call for me to "get my shit together." I was in therapy for two years after the accident.)
During my time at CSU, I worked in Industrial Engineering at United Parcel Service, which is where I spent evenings five days a week.
Upon graduating from Cleveland State University, I applied to several graduate programs in Anthropology and Organizational Behavior. I was accepted at the University of Pennsylvania (Anthropology), American University (Applied Anthropology), and Case Western Reserve University (Organizational Behavior) . I chose the Case ORBH Ph.D. program.
Completed initial course work in the ORBH Ph.D. program, but left the program to take my first job in regional planning and economic development at the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) in Cleveland.
Sally finished her undergraduate and graduate training at Case Western Reserve University and entered the field of community mental health in 1976. That same year we bought our first home on Yellowstone Road in Cleveland Heights.
In March 1977, our first son, Jeff, was born. I recall the wonderful warm early Spring day Jeff was born at the Kaiser Hospital in Cleveland.
Minus frequent ear infections, Jeff was an easy baby. After three months, Sally went back to work and Jeff was off to a home day care (Ginny Stieger) in Cleveland Heights.
Jeff's first love was Mary Stieger, Ginny's daughter who worked in the day care. Maybe it was Mary's blonde hair, or maybe her blue Camaro, but Jeff was infatuated with her. I have a vivid memory of my 4-year old son riding in a blue convertible with a 19-year old blonde. (Hold that thought.)
Jeff loved to play soccer and hockey, and he was good at both. He was both an aggressive and strong player.
Our second son, Jason, was born in October 1980. Jason, like Jeff, was a cheerful baby, but he had a hard time sleeping because of night terrrors.
Legos was the "toy of choice" for Jeff and Jason until video games became a reality. Nintendo and Atari games were the rage for most kids in elementary and middle school.
My most vivid memories of Jason were watching him go around the house unplugging and plugging in various electrical cords attached to lamps, the TV, the refrigerator, the radio, and other devices. If something didn't work, it was probably because Jason had unplugged it.
Jason joined Jeff at the Stieger day care. Eventually both boys graduated from the Stiegers and moved on the First Baptist Day Care in Shaker Heights.
I left NOACA in 1978 to take an economic development manager job at the Greater Cleveland Growth Association (GCGA). Working at Growth was great. It was the most fun job I have ever had. Not only was the job challenging, but I was exposed to Cleveland's leading business and government leaders.
Working for the Growth Association gave my career a real boost. I couldn't get enough of the place. The only downside was it didn't pay enough money.
So much happened in my life in the 1970s. I was so busy that I wasn't aware that the decade had slipped by. The 1970s was a period of learning, growth, and advancement for me. I had my education behind me, created a family and I learned to be a father (still am), and found a career path that has served me well over the past 30 years.
After five years, three promotions, and a lot of learning, I left the Growth Association in 1983 to become an independent consultant working in the Far East. I spent a good part of 18 months working in Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong Kong on industry consulting projects, mostly in the automotive industry.
My international work helped me to grow personally and professionally. I developed greater self-confidence and learned to adapt quickly to new situations. My good friend Tom Kim was a big help to my international work. Tom and I worked closely together, especially in Korea, his home country.
In 1984, I was recruited for a new economic development job in Lake County, Ohio. I was selected as the organization's first Executive Director, a position I held for only two years, when once again I was recruited away; this time to Cleveland State University (CSU). This was my first "startup" and I learned a great deal from the job about dealing with a board, raising funds, building work teams, and managing a diverse business portfolio.
From the "Yellowstone years," there were many wonderful summer vacations on North Carolina's Outer Banks. The boys loved going to the beach. So did I. All our beach vacations, except the last one, bring warm memories to my heart. Signs of Sally and my marriage falling apart were quite visible during that last trip to the beach.
Jeff and Jason both started grade school at Noble Elementary School on Noble Road in Cleveland Heights. When we moved to the Wellington house, they continued at Fairfax Elementary School.
We moved from the Yellowstone house in 1985 to the Wellington Road house. Wellington was a grand old house with six bedrooms and large front and back yards.
The boys grew quickly. Their early years flew by. Overall, we were a happy family. Like most, we had times of struggle. The worst news in the making was that my marriage was falling apart, which was about to have a major impact on our two young boys' lives.
It was 1986. My father-in-law Roger died suddenly the year before. My Mom died in January of pancreatic cancer. It was a painful six months. My marriage was on the rocks with no hope of repair. I changed jobs in May of that year. All these developments occurred within a year. I was numb by Christmas 1986 when Sally and I had our most serious discussions about ending our marriage.
I joined CSU in May 1986 as Director of Economic Development. I was based in the College of Urban Affairs, a unique college that blended academics and public service to the community. It was a perfect opportunity for me to be on frontline in developing and applying new ideas in the economic development field. NE Ohio and the State of Ohio were living laboratories for new idea application.
In 1986, I also started my company, Donald T. Iannone & Associates, as a part-time economic development consulting business. This was an important step for me in growing my economic development and my reputation nationally and internationally.
In 1987, Sally and I separated and then were divorced. I moved out of the Wellinghouse house to keep the boys in tact. It was the best decision. I was in therapy during the transition period, which helped me work through my pain and to set a direction for my life in the future.
I met Mary Rothaermel at the Severance Athletic Club in Cleveland Heights in late 1987. We started dating and in June 1990 we were married. Our relationship started slowly and then gathered momentum over a 6-month period. I wasn't looking for a serious relationship, but it happened, and I'm glad it did.
Mary was working in administration at the Cleveland Clinic, where she still is employed. Mary has an extraordinary ability to manage people. Because of this ability, she moved forward at the Clinic from managing one department to managing three.
From the beginning, Mary exhibited a "hereness" that makes her who she is as a human being. You always know where you stand with Mary. Her compassionate "hereness" has been of enormous help to me over the past 15 years.
Mary has encouraged and helped to me make something out of my life. She has helped me use my, at times, scattered energy to focus on getting things done. This has been enormously important to me.
The 1980s were a time of growth and change for me. They were a building time from the standpoint of career. They were a time of change and transformation in terms of key relationships in my life. Finally, they were a time of building a solid foundation for future growth.