Introduction
My background
Hello, my name is Dan Stone and I am taking on the Fab Academy journey in 2023. I am married to Carolyn and have 3 boys ages 15, 12 and 9. Originally from Israel, I came to the USA 20 years ago for graduate school, where I met my wife who was a classmate. We moved around the USA for work and lived for 3 years in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Over the last 20 years I had a great career in the tech space. I have spend the
early part in strategy and M&A and then moved over the general management with a
focus as a turnaround CEO. I fixed struggling companies (and sold them) which allowed me to meet
and work with some great people and travel around the world.
(here is my Linkedin for more professional background https://www.linkedin.com/in/dstone2/)
A few years ago I semi retired and split my time taking care of my family and kids, running a few small businesses and rekindling some old (and new) hobbies / passions. I have had the opporunity to spend time at the Charlotte Latin Fab Lab, learning some new skills and getting to know the great staff and community.
Being a hobby creator all my life I have had a chance to learn different skill sets over the years. I grew up woodworking with my dad, building model cars and planes, taking afterschool basic programing classes (Basic and Pascal) and spending highschool afternoons with some basic electronics. I dabbled in carpentry and construction, cooking, gardening and hydroponics. Over the last couple of years I have got a taste for digital fabrication at the Charlotte Latin Lab and now decided to "learn how to do it the right way" by taking on the Fab Academy program.
Back in the class room
This is my first time back in the classroom as a student in 20 years and so it is a little daunting. This growing anxiety is compounded by the need for extensive documentation. I have dysgraphia and so writing has never been a strong suit. This is a good opportunity to show my kids you are never too old to learn something new, even if it is hard.
I am going to do my best....please excuse the typos :)