Mr. Kirkland is a native of Oil City, PA, and a graduate of the local school system. Appointed to the US Coast Guard Academy, he graduated with a BS in Marine Engineering. His postgraduate assignment was at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute where he graduated with a BS degree in Civil Engineering. He had a successful career spanning thirty years in the Coast Guard serving in operational and engineering assignments. After retirement from the Coast Guard as a Captain, he was employed for eleven years by General Dynamics Electric Boat Division as the Division’s Environmental Manager. Mr. Kirkland has been a resident of the Town of River Bend for 17 years and serves as The Town’s Mayor.