My name is Fred McKinney. My interest in website development began when I was a graduate student at the University of Missouri-Columbia studying library and information sciences. To be entirely honest, I found it more fascinating than learning cataloging, reference, running a library, and the like. While at MU, I learned how to write HTML code and also had a little bit of a crash course in JavaScript, Perl/CGI scripting, and querying databases with SQL.
On my own time, of course, while working at Missouri Baptist University in St. Louis, I also learned how to code CSS and PHP and created a few websites there on the side, including one for a church I was going to at the time. Also, while at Missouri Baptist University, they launched their current website in 2013, which is based on WordPress, which I was very impressed with, and the idea of learning WordPress intrigued me. In all, I spent about 15 years at Missouri Baptist University until my position was eliminated in mid-2018 due to budget cuts.
As luck would have it, I began searching to see if there was a place where I could learn WordPress, and found that there was a course in it coming up only two weeks after my last day at MBU at the University of Missouri-St. Louis’ West County Computer Center. I asked my wife, Rebekah, if she was OK with us spending the just under $500 for me to enroll in the course, and she gave her blessing to me doing so. In time, I landed a website project for Laurie Bryson, a counselor in Washington, MO.
In early 2020, we moved to West Plains for a new job for my wife (she is the library director at Missouri State University’s West Plains campus). The following year, I had two web design projects fall right into my lap. One was for the Houston, MO Chamber of Commerce due to some problems they had with a previous web host. Also, in 2021, I was asked to serve as president of the George D. Hay Society, and one of the first things I did was improve its web presence.
As it stands right now at the time of this writing, in October of 2022, there are also two other website projects I have landed, which will be coming soon and announced here as well as on our portfolio page. And of course, I will be more than happy to take on a website project for your business, organization, band, or church. Just call me at (573) 776-5253 and I’ll do everything within my power to help your business, organization, church, or band GO PLACES!