| 1941 |
Born: April 1, 1941 in Bainbridge, Georgia. Jesse's
biological mother died in child birth and his biological father passed on shortly
after arriving in the United States. John
Lovelace LaPrade and Lucy Francis Finchum LaPrade became his Foster/Adoptive Parents
and took him home at the hospital's urging since they had just lost their own
child in child birth.
|
| 1956 - 1960 |
Student at Chatham Virginia
High School. |
| 1960 - 1961 |
Student at Roanoke Technical Institute. |
| 1962 - 1963 |
Student Transfer to a
branch of Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) in Washington DC. While living
with his brother, received a degree in Building Construction, a General Contractor's
license and Master Electrician license. |
| 1962 - 1966 |
Student at Virginia Polytechnic
Institute (VPI), in Blacksburg, Virginia. In 1962, received his Master Plumber
license. In 1965, took a one and only college drawing art class "Perspective Drawing". |
| 1966 - 1968 |
Student at Raleigh North
Carolina State University. Received Masters in Plant Pathology. |
| 1968 |
Worked in Naples, Florida
as an Acting Assistant County Agent. |
| 1969 |
Married Betty
June Davis and is still married to June today. Foster/Adoptive mother, Lucy Francis
Finchum LaPrade died in January 1969. |
| 1970 - 1973 |
Graduate Student
at University of Florida, Gainesville, studying Plant Pathology and received his
Ph.D. degree in Agriculture. |
| 1974 - 1977 |
Worked at Clemson University
at Pee Dee Experiment Station in Florence, South Carolina. |
| 1976 |
June and Jesse's son
is born, John Christopher LaPrade, in Florence, South Carolina. |
| 1977 - 1979 |
Worked at Union Carbide Agricultural Products
Division in Jacksonville, Florida. |
| 1980 - 1989 |
Moved to Dothan, Alabama still working for Union
Carbide Agricultural Products Division. |
| 1988 |
Started to paint with watercolors. |
| 1990 |
Took a position as an Environmental Specialist
with Auburn University, Alabama Cooperative Extension System (ACES), an outreach
educational part of the university. |
| 1991 |
Foster/Adoptive
father, John Lovelace LaPrade, died May 8, 1991. Leaves a letter for Jesse
upon his death. |
| 1993 |
Jesse reads the letter that was
left to him and for the first time in his life, he understands that he was adopted
by the LaPrade's who had kept this fact from him all of his life. Burned the letter
in his wood burning fireplace that night. |
| 1994 |
Took a night class in painting, desperate
to learn how to paint, but the class was a disappointment and taught him nothing.
On the second last day of class, his teacher tells him that he simply has to paint
so he paints a picture in 20 minutes and the teacher is so impressed that she
tells him there is nothing she can teach him. He finally figures out that one
must paint what comes natural. Learns that he loves to paint with palette knives. |
| 1995 |
Painted his first oil painting titled
The Log Cabin In The Snow. |
| 1999 |
Encouraged by the quality of his paintings and
each painting he completed was more rewarding, especially towards the end of this
year. |
| 2000 |
Finally decided to tell his wife and son about
the letter left to him by his Foster/Adoptive father in July. |
| 2001 |
Signed a contract with Auburn University, (ACES)
to add agricultural safety to current job duties and to coordinate state wide
training activities. |
| 2005 |
ACES web site for Farm Safety is
activated including horticultural business safety that is the only OSHA approved
web site in horticulture. |
| 2006 - present |
Continues to paint seascapes. |
... Paintings, Hand Painted Prints
and Butterfly Art 
