Then life interrupted. My mother was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in 2008. Though conventional treatments aimed to help, they eventually took a heavy toll, and she passed in 2014. Around the same time, my father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, and after years of increasing dependence, his fragile immune system succumbed to COVID in 2021.
Close family and friends faced their own battles—cancer, strokes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, MS, autism—revealing just how widespread and devastating chronic conditions are. These losses shook me deeply. I was left with grief, questions, and a sobering realization: the human body—so fearfully and wonderfully made—was breaking down far too often and far too soon.
My fascination with systems began during my two decades as a systems reliability engineer. I loved uncovering how systems work, identifying vulnerabilities, and optimizing them for performance, dependability, and safety.
True reliability comes from seamless integration—where hardware provides structure, software governs behavior, and firmware bridges the two. Just as in human health, where biology, chemistry, and even mindset interact, every system is a living network of interconnected parts. Recognizing that all systems eventually wear down, my focus was also on ensuring that failures occurred predictably and safely, safeguarding both people and the environment.
