Because of You

About the Book

     Because of You is George’s wild eighteen year ride from Hawaii to Guam and back, a trip through Nebraska that gets the State placed “Off Limits” to him, an improbable assignment to Norton AFB in San Bernardino, a suspected atomic blast at Twenty Nine Palms that becomes a public relations nightmare, hitchhiking from San Bernardino nightly to “dance and smooch.” He meets and proposes marriage to a woman the moment he sees her, and takes the chance of a lifetime to win her heart. George relates a near disaster in Kentucky, a meeting of his California bride with his Grandmother, and six months of “hell in a handcart” at USAF Officer Candidate School. Unforgettable characters pop up including draft evaders caught in a Reserve Unit call to active duty, and the owner of a restaurant who acts like a Mother to young enlisted men. He meets Bob Hope and Marilyn Maxwell, and celebrates the birth of his sons, Jeff and Greg.

     Because of You is a love story, told from the perspective of fifty-six years. George becomes a problem solver with a conflict between his career and the woman he loves more than life. At 77, he is busy working on his next book, Side by Side. In an interview, he said, “Hell, I’m not old. Old is something you store in the garage or on a top shelf somewhere and forget it. I’m vital. I dance at least two hours a week, attend a writing class, work five days a year with gifted teens, and read a hundred books a year. Sometimes I even empty the dishwasher.”

About the Author

      George Carter escaped from a coal mining town in Virginia through an Air Force career that saw him rise from Private to Major. He served in Texas, Wyoming, Guam, California, Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, the Pentagon, SAC Headquarters in Omaha, and eight years in Hawaii, including three years on the staff of the Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Command. He earned a B.A. in Economics and earned 92 hours of graduate credit in Chinese/Japanese History. He studied Spanish and Mandarin. Retiring at 39, he owned an art gallery in Hawaii and worked for the National Federation of Independent Business. He served three years on the International Board of Sertoma and in 1972 founded the Serteens Club of Hawaii, an organization of highly gifted high school students. In 2005, the club was renamed the George B. Carter Serteens Club, to honor George for more than 30 years of service. He lives in West Hills, California, with his wife and daughter. He can be reached at gspccommand@aol.com.