The Caudills of the Cumberlands: Anne's Story of Life with Harry
Terry Cummins was born in the hills of Pendleton County, Kentucky, in the house his great-grandfather built. He grew up on this family farm, which is about 20 miles from where Anne Frye Caudill grew up; both have similar rural backgrounds.Cummins has a bachelor of arts degree from Transylvania University and a master of arts from the University of Kentucky. After two years in the US Navy, he started a career in education — two years as an English and physical education teacher — followed by 31 years in administration, primarily as a high school principal in Kentucky and southern Indiana.After he retired, Cummins began a second life following Helen Keller's creed that "Life is an adventure or nothing." His adventures include running marathons, climbing mountains, trekking through many parts of the world, and his compulsion — writing. He ran his first marathon at age 63, climbed his first mountain on his 64th birthday and reached the summit of a 20,000-foot peak three days later. He published his first of more than 625 articles at age 66, and published his first of five books at age 69.Cummins traveled through Siberia and trekked above the base camp at both the north and south faces of Mt. Everest. He is the oldest person to reach the advanced base camp at K2, the second tallest mountain in the world. He lived in India for a month, climbed mountains in the Andes in South America, and recently hiked through part of Patagonia.His previous books includeFeed My Sheep,How Did Back Then Become Right Now,Briny's Gift, andRetirement Is a Blast Once You Light the Fuse.Cummins has been married to his wife, Vera, for nearly 60 years. They have four children, five grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.