Meet the Owner -- Stephen Parker, Webmaster

Posted Tue, 04/28/2009 - 15:59 by sci_admin

Greetings! Thank you for visiting Space Coast Interactive.com.

Please allow me to introduce myself. I'm Stephen Parker, Director of SCI. My friends and colleagues call me Steve or Sparky. I've been working the Web since 1994, and it's my passion in life.

Being a Gen-Xer, I grew up with the personal computer, computer games and the Internet. My first experience with computers started with playing Pong by Atari back in 1974. Soon after, I began tinkering with the TRS-80 and became hooked on technology. I started using a Macintosh when it came out in 1984, and I've worked with IBM PC's, Amiga's, Linux systems, and built and managed my own Apache servers. I witnessed first-hand the advent of so much 80's technology like the Sony Walkman, the switch to the Compact Disk format, the VHS and Betacam wars, and of course, the rise of the cellular phone and high-definition television.

I've always been fascinated with space, computers, games and technology having grown up on the Space Coast, living near NASA, and having been influenced and encouraged by my father who was an engineer for a local high-tech company. Living by the beach and with so many rivers and lakes in Florida, I'm into all types of water sports like diving, surfing, fishing and lately, kiteboarding. My passions growing up included science research, fantasy gaming, playing chess, and tinkering with electronic gadgets and computers. I was truly a child of the 80's, and feel blessed to have witnessed the tremendous advances in technology which set the stage for the Internet.

The teachers here on the Space Coast were a huge influence in my life. Foster Thayer, a science teacher in junior high school taught me the scientific method and public speaking. Bill Lavinghousez, a biology teacher active (and a leader) in the science research program at Melbourne High School, helped me to learn microbiology and win multiple science fair awards in Florida and ultimately I was selected to become an alternate to the International Science Fair in 1984. Although science was interesting and important to me, I realized that my true calling was communication (writing, speaking and presenting), and I studied and received a degree in Communication from Florida State University earning a 3.69/4.00 GPA. During college I was an active member of many organizations including Theta Chi Fraternity and was elected to FSU's Student Senate. While in Tallahassee, I helped to start the university's first college run radio station at WVFS or V-89 as we called it.

My career began in Irving, Texas where I worked for Memorex Telex and designed the company's first Website back in 1994. I had been designing technical marketing materials for the company's line of server products, then upon starting to use the Web on AOL, decided to learn HTML soon after I began using JavaScript and Perl. I also learned Visual Basic and how to serve documents through our Web servers located in North America, Europe and Australia. Using VB, I helped build one of the Web's first applications to distribute sales documentation to our sales force named Virtual Briefcase. It was during this time that I realized I had a true gift for combining marketing communication and technology. I took to the Web by nature, and began learning everything I could about working with this new medium.

In 1996 I was recruited by VHA, a supply-chain management company serving over 1,000 not-for-profit hospitals nationwide. My role included managing the company's Web site as well as helping to build a large-scale extranet named VHAseCURE.net. This Website was recognized as one of the nation's largest secure extranets in 1998 by Information Week magazine. I was able to work on the project with IBM and Proxicom out of Washington, D.C. The Web became my labor of love, and I learned from some of the best people in the industry. During those early days of the Web, it was an exciting time!

In 1998 I became Webmaster for Blue Cross and Blue Shield working out of their Eagan, Minnesota offices. There I served to redesign the company's Web site and developed and managed the company's intranet named Blue Net. I worked on many Web-related projects for customer service applications, information management systems for the big tobacco trials, and designed and developed an activity and gaming site for a 'healthy kids' school program named FitnessFever.com. However, being a 'Florida Boy' living in Minnesota was difficult to say the least. I missed the warmth of the sun and the coolness of the ocean breezes and water. I had to move on.

In 2002 I was given the dream opportunity to move to Hawaii. It was always a wish of mine to live and surf in paradise, and I got to live that fantasy life for a few years. Working for Maui Ocean Center I was able to restructure the aquarium's sales and marketing program. We also developed a new Web site and implemented online ticketing. I began to focus more on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques and methods of marketing online and e-mail marketing campaigns. In 2004, we were named by Zagat Survey as Hawaii's top family attraction. We hit record attendance in 2005 and the ad campaigns conducted by my staff won us numerous awards including a front-page article (with one of the largest newspaper photos ever published) in the New York Times Travel section (both print and online).

All good things come to an end, however. I was far from home and family, and my parents were getting older. It was time to return home in 2006. During those few years Web technology had changed dramatically. It was like learning HTML all over again by a factor of 1000. I hit the books, classes, Webinars and picked the brains of my colleagues both IRL and in forums across the Web. Since returning to my hometown of Melbourne, Florida I've become an expert at Web Design/Development, multimedia and search engine optimization (SEO). I honed my skills working with several different organizations and some fantastic professionals at companies that include 321 Webguys, 321 Agency, and Florida Today by working on multiple Web projects including sites for the Brevard Cultural Alliance, Designers West, Satcom Direct, Preston Studios, MAI, and Globe Wireless. I also belong to a number of organizations including Space Coast Wine Guild and First United Methodist Church, and I still live near the beach - my source of inspiration, freedom and spirituality. I was now ready to take the next step...

Space Coast Interactive was formally opened for business in 2008 (informally in 2006) with the mission of serving small- and mid-size businesses to produce top-quality Open Source Websites and Web applications to Central Florida businesses and beyond. My goal has been to bring my national experience, background in marketing communication, and new 'Web 2.0' knowledge to my local community. I've found a few extremely talented people to help me, and together as a team we're building World Class Web sites for our clients for a fraction of the cost of the large agencies. Every day we learn more, and we bring that knowledge to our client projects to help propel them to higher levels of success in their businesses and organizations through the Internet and beyond.

The Web sites that influenced me over the years include:

If you would like to know more about me, you can review my online résumé for more detailed information regarding my professional history and technical expertise.

Thank you for taking the time to get to know me. Now I'd like the honor of meeting and working with you. Please feel free to contact me any time. You can also find me on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and Plaxo. I'd love to hear from you!