KEN DOWNER

Ken Downer is a retired U.S. Army Colonel.  He served for 26 years as an infantryman and paratrooper, and included planning and executing combined arms operations among his many duties.  In addition to numerous stateside assignments, he has been stationed in South Korea, Panama, Honduras, Germany, and Iraq.  In Iraq, he commanded a combat outpost manned by a multi-national force located seven kilometers from the Iran-Iraq border.  There, he and his teams trained, advised, and assisted Iraqi Border Police forces in securing over 250 kilometers of international border.  His military decorations include the Bronze Star and the Legion of Merit.

 

Ken holds a Bachelor of Science in International Relations from the College of William and Mary, and a Master’s in Business from Webster University.  Working with Boyd Seevers and others, he has co-authored five published papers analyzing first century military artifacts found at Shiloh and Khirbet el-Maqatir, with four additional papers pending.  He is also currently working on a military re-assessment of the Bar Kochba Revolt that occurred 132-136 AD as part of a project with Dr. Michael Wise.

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Ken and his wife Marcelyn have been married for 33 years, and currently make their home in Victoria, Minnesota.  When not busy interpreting military artifacts, or attempting to improve his questionable skill in the ancient art of slinging, he enjoys training and racing in long distance triathlons, and has competed three times at the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.