BIOGRAPHY

     Jan E. Culbertson was born July 12, 1938, in Portland, Oregon. After high school Jan enlisted in the U.S. Navy on September 9, 1955, at the age of seventeen. During his twenty-five year career in the Navy, Jan served on a number of ships and shore stations. He retired in 1980, as a Chief Intelligence Specialist. His military awards include: Good Conduct Awards (6); Presidential Unit Citation; Meritorious Unit Citations (2); Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (2); Vietnam Service Medal; and the National Defense Service Medal.
     He graduated from the University of North Florida in 1979, with a BA in History, and from the University of San Diego, School of Law in 1984, with a JD degree. After practicing law in San Diego long enough to discover it was not for him, he retired and began writing books. To date he has published five short novels and a book on Nationalist Chinese Daggers. In 2006, one of his books, “The Legend of the Lost Tiki,” won the Gold Medal Award from the Military Writer’s Society of America as the best children’s book.
     Jan is married to the former Teresa de Jesus Villela of Mazatlan, Mexico. They have two grandsons and five granddaughters. Jan presently lives in Chula Vista, California.