Terry Swets I was born and raised in Southern California and lived there until I was 18 years old. After graduating high school at 16, I stumbled around college for a couple of years before I decided to join the military. I got stationed at Lackland Air Force Base in 1983 and that started my life in Texas. I got out after five years and applied for a job at CORT Furniture, where they didn't offer me the job at first because they thought I was too small to move furniture. Funny! I have now been there for over 20 years, and am currently the General Manager in Austin. During this time, I went back to California for three years to attend college and then came back to Texas with CORT and went to college at UT San Antonio and UT El Paso before finally deciding to give it up due to company transfers and opportunity. Five different cities with CORT made it tough but perhaps someday I will finish! Gwen and I met in San Antonio and married in Fredericksburg in 1995. We had our first daughter exactly nine months later! Our second daughter was born two years later in El Paso. I am proud of the fact that CORT is the only company that they have ever known. I feel blessed to have such a wonderful family, including an awesome wife. Gwen has a marketing degree and is a licensed Realtor, yet she has always been a full-time mom to our girls. Her influence on them is obvious. They are great little girls. I have been with IFMA since 1998. Being part of the organization has helped me to grow, both as a businessman, and as a person. I feel fortunate to be surrounded by a group of people who strive to be successful, as well as working to support the success of those around them. While there are many success stories associated with IFMA, there are many times that the work that we do brings only the satisfaction of knowing that you helped somebody else achieve their own success.