Kenneth Slater














After graduating CHS in 1971, I moved away to explore the world, and to find a meaningful career. I had no idea how much that endeavor would change my life.

     
 

I found a groove in the national 'intelligence community' (IC), and worked a long career in top secret counterintelligence (CI) operations. (CI includes counterespionage and counterterrorism). I specialized in highly esoteric CI technical surveillance operations, and some of my achievements were lauded by Presidents Bush and Obama.

   

Along the way I completed a Master's Degree in Education; retired from a career as a federal Counterintelligence Special Agent in the Army; completed a highly competitive CI technical program (heavy in electrical engineering) at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and I worked for the Defense Intelligence Agency's (DIA) CI program until my 2nd retirement in 2017. By then I had been to 54 countries, and briefed a couple hundred ambassadors, Station Chiefs, and senior military leaders.

   

Of my time working for the DIA, eleven consecutive years (2004 - 2015) were in Iraq and Afghan warzones running intelligence networks (spies) to target senior terrorists, and to defeat hostile foreign intelligence entities.

 

My work saved countless American lives by stopping many terrorist attacks in the planning and staging phases; neutralized hundreds of terrorists; developed new methods of discovering enemies; enhanced national security in two significant and enduring ways, and I influenced our national foreign policy towards Pakistan.

In sum, I achieved my goals of seeing the world (54 countries), and finding a meaningful career. As it happened, I also made some significant lasting contributions along the way, of which an interagency (CIA/DIA/DoD) CI Campaign (a counterterrorism initiative) I developed, is still ongoing.

On a personal level, I am blessed with a wonderful wife, two grown beautiful children (son and daughter) who are married and have wonderful families, and I have four beautiful grandkids. My daughter is a Registered Nurse, and my son is a successful business owner.

     

That said, I overcame the challenges of starting life very poor as an orphan in Hartford's ghetto housing projects; getting bounced around in multiple foster homes, and thereafter in the Cromwell orphanage, and I enjoyed a meaningful and productive life just the same.

I've been retired at my penthouse condo on Cocoa Beach, Florida since 2017. We own a few properties, and are blessed to be living the American dream.

 

Once my wife retires from the newly renamed 'Cape Canaveral Space Force', in four years, we plan to go on Waltzing vacations in distant lands (one such place is Vienna, Austria), a couple times each year.

That broadly sums up what I've done since high school.

(updated February 2020)