CRAIG
O. THOMPSON'S
BIOGRAPHY
by
J.
Caniglia
Business
continuity consultant,
terrorism expert,
speaker, educator,
award-winning author,
and communications
director for the
International
Association for
Counterterrorism &
Security Professionals,
Craig O. Thompson, has
led an exciting,
eclectic life. Born in
California, where he
spent most of his
formative years, college and a
life-changing experience
in Sri Lanka--as the
first 18 year-old to
serve overseas in the
U.S. Peace Corps--was
all it took for him to
decide that an ordinary
life would not
do.
In
his early years, Craig
was honored with a
special invitation to
Washington, D.C.--by
Vice President Hubert H.
Humphrey--where he was
able to speak before the
very first gathering of
returned Peace Corps
volunteers. Several
years later, he received
a letter of commendation
from the Carnegie Hero
Foundation for "courage
in the rescue of
accident victims," after
helping to pull a family
from a burning car just
before it
exploded.
Craig
is a business continuity
/ disaster recovery
planning and
counter-terrorism
consultant for SMBs and venture-capital groups; a
media talk-show guest
expert; and, an award-winning
author. He also delivers
keynote speeches and
workshops for national
and international
businesses, public,
government and trade
organizations.
For
nearly twenty years,
Craig O. Thompson has
researched and studied
"CBRNE" (Chemical,
Biological,
Radiological, Nuclear,
and Explosives) warfare
and the effects of
terrorism perpetrated on
democratic soils. Says
Thompson, "I originally
set out to write a
suspense-thriller. What
I discovered, years
before the Attack on
America, at once alarmed
and startled me. My
research directed me to
the lack of protection
for our loved-ones and
for the poor lack of preparation and
security to protect our nation
and
commerce."
It
was at that point Craig
began to publicly speak
out in business forums
and to the
media...hoping, in the
race against time, that
Americans would begin to
understand the enormity
of the looming threat.
Click
here for examples of
major media coverage of
his predictions, prior
to
9/11.
Thompson says, "We are still woefully unprepared for a terrorist attack or for a series of natural or biological disasters that could take our country to its knees. On a scale of one to ten, since 9/11, our preparedness level has only shifted from a two to a three."
He continued, "When we hear government spokespersons or members of Congress pat themselves on the back for having protected America from terrorists, since 9/11, just remember how long it was between the initial 2003 attack on the World Trade Center and the attack eight years later. Terrorists have all the time in the world to plan and wait. In the terrorist's al Qaeda handbook (on CDs circulated throughout the world), the key word--mentioned over and over again--is 'patience'."
All the more reason for businesses to build a Business Continuity and Disaster Contigency Plan (BCP) into their company strategies and policy manuals. And it is just as important to business start-ups that are looking for venture capital, since financial institutions and funding groups want to know how new ventures are prepared to protect their investments during these risky times.
Thompson
is a board member and
communications director
for the International
Association for
Counterterrorism and
Security Professionals
(IACSP), a member of the
Institute for Business
& Home Safety, the
International
Association of
Contingency Planners,
and is affiliated with
the Nuclear Threat
Initiative (NTI),
Project Vote-Smart, and
supports programs
associated with Business
Executives for National
Security
(BENS).
A
graduate of Northern
Arizona University,
Craig holds a B.S. and
M.A. in Education, with
a minor in Political
Science from the N.A.U.
Center for Excellence in
Education. He also holds
a college lifetime
teaching credential in
Theatre Arts and Related
Technologies.
Mr.
Thompson taught 3rd,
4th, 6th and 8th grades
on the Navajo
Reservation, followed by
over twenty-five years
work in marketing and
arts management. While
an instructor on the
Navajo Reservation, he
co-directed the
Navajo-Hawaii Cultural
Exchange--an educational
program, created with
his friend Ed
McGrath--both of whom
were honored in Congress
with recognition twice
in the "U.S.
Congressional
Record."
Craig
worked for Lucille Ball,
as Desilu-Paramount
Television
post-production office
manager during the days
of the original Star
Trek, Mission:
Impossible, Mannix,
and The Lucy
Show. He was also
the producer-artistic
director for the Lucille
Ball Studio Theater on
the former Desilu
Studios
lot.
Thompson
has been writing for
over twenty-five years.
He first started with
poetry and lyrical
pieces--encouraged by
the late Poet Laureate
and Pulitzer
prize-winning Poet,
Gwendolyn Brooks, and by
renowned
composer-pianist, Roger
Williams. Further
personal encouragement came from
comedienne, Lucille
Ball.
Experience
writing copy for
regional and national
advertising, marketing
and public relations
campaigns--for public
and private-sector
businesses--rounded out
an ability to research
and express ideas. As a
member of the National
Speakers Association
and International
Platform Association,
Mr. Thompson was
published in an
anthology titled "Star
Spangled Speakers."
Following on the heals
of these experiences, he
moved on to larger
literary
pursuits.
As
a professional speaker,
educator and author,
Craig O. Thompson is a
former board member of
Washington Independent
Writers association, and
a member of numerous
organizations affiliated
with the book publishing
industry.
His
debut award-winning fiction, Omar:
A Novel, is actually
his second book. The
first, a science-fiction
fantasy thriller, was
put on hold when the
idea developed for his
suspense/thriller,
Omar. Now,
Thompson is re-exploring
the inner-workings of
the science fiction plot
and gathering research
and other important
character development
and plot requirements
for at least two more
novels in treatment
stage, or at some other
level of
progress.
He
is also working on two
screenplays. Two
non-fiction books
called, "The Terrorist
Cell Game"--are due out
in the spring of 2008,
and "How to Master the 8
Principles of a BCP"
(© 2003 -
2008).
Thompson
divides his time between
consulting, researching, writing and
spending time with his
family. His ultimate
goal--when not
writing--includes
establishment of the St.
Jude Foundation of Hope,
funded through a portion
of revenue from
writings, keynotes, and
workshops.
His
book, OMAR: A
Novel, received the
International Benjamin
Franklin Awards™
Silver Award in the
category BEST NEW
VOICE--FICTION. The
awards were presented in
New York, by the
Publisher's Marketing
Association prior to
BookExpo America--the
world's largest
publishing trade show.
Twenty-five thousand
participants attended
BookExpo.
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