About Raymond Thorpe Jr

Hi, my name is Raymond and I was “made” in Japan in 1972.  Yep, that’s where it all started for me, Tachikawa, Tokyo.  My parents Raymond and Esperanza Thorpe were both in the U.S. Airforce Military and stationed there at the time.

Being from a military family, I was traveling to different parts of the world before I even knew what traveling really was. After about a year after being born in Japan, we moved back to the United States. 

My first childhood memories came when we were living in California. One of my favorite things to do there as a child was flying kites. I could do that for hours. Just laying in the grass holding onto the string and watching the kite glide high up in the air was peaceful to me.

I also remember the ice cream truck that drove around the neighborhood.  I used to love getting the bubble gum packs they sold because they came with really cool tattoos. My mom used to get a kick out of it because I was always tatted up. 

California is also where my sister Tamara joined the family.  Having a sister was neat for me because she wore different types of clothes than me and her toys were different. 

From California, we moved back overseas to Germany.  I had fun times there in Germany. I was in all kinds of sports, played in the snow, climbed the cherry trees, and went on long hikes called Volksmarch.

One day my dad brought home a dog from the military veterinarian that they were gonna put to sleep because the family didn’t want it anymore.  My dad couldn’t bear the idea of putting down such a beautiful collie because he was unwanted, so he brought home the dog to us.

  The poor dog was so nervous, the first thing it did when it came into the house and saw us was pee all over the floor.  Laddie Boy is what we named him and he turned out to be the most amazing dog I’ve ever had in my life to date. 

Laddie Boy could do anything and was very obedient.  Turns out he was originally trained to be a police dog but failed out of the training because he was too friendly. I say he was destined to be part of our family. 

Laddie Boy and I spent countless hours playing frisbee, stick, or ball, he would fetch whatever.  I remember we would go for long walks in the forest, he was a great companion.  I miss him, but he will always be in my most cherished memories as a kid.

  It was in Germany where my brother Joseph joined the family as the youngest sibling. That’s when I got my first roommate. 

After living in Germany for about four years, we returned to the United States, this time moving to a little town in North Texas, called Wichita Falls.  It was during a Christmas break in Wichita Falls when I got my first life lesson from my dad.

  I must have been around twelve years old, but it was a lesson that has carried with me to this day.  Since it was December, we started asking my Dad for money so that we could buy Christmas presents for each other and our friends.

  My Dad took this opportunity to teach us a principle.  He took all three of us to the store and began to buy a bunch of sandwich bags, ribbons, hot glue, and small Christmas decorations.

We didn’t know what was going on, we thought we were going to the store so that we could buy Christmas presents, so we were confused.  When we got home, my dad gathered us around the kitchen table where he took all the supplies he bought and placed them on the table. 

Then he asked us to go get four wire hangers to begin.  That is when my dad began to show us how to craft a Christmas wreath from all the materials he purchased and instructed us to follow him and do the same. 

Wow, those wreaths came out beautiful.  They appeared snow white and iridescent from the plastic bags we used, and after we decorated them with bells, bows, ribbons, and various Christmas trinkets, they came out spectacular.

  I thought we were just making decorations for the house, but that is when my Dad began his lesson. He told us to go out into the neighborhood and knock on the neighbors’ doors, show them the wreaths and ask them if they would like to buy one for their front door for Christmas.

  I remember we were asking $20 per wreath.  We didn’t even get halfway up the street before we sold them all.  We were so excited we came running back to the house waving our twenty-dollar bills in the air. 

That’s when my dad sat us down and gave us a life lesson.  He said, I could have given each of you $10 and you would have spent it all on buying your gifts, but then had nothing left. 

But now, you each have $20 dollars and there are still materials left to make more Christmas wreaths. So, if you would like more money to buy your presents, you now know how to make more wreaths and sell them.

I got to work immediately, made more wreaths, and sold them.  I remember my total got up to $140, and with that, I bought all my Christmas presents and still had money left over.  I was very happy and felt empowered. 

My dad taught us the lesson of how to feed ourselves and not just rely on handouts.  As the old saying goes, give a man a fish and he can eat for a day, but teach a man to fish and he can feed himself for a lifetime.

  That principle has stayed with me all my life and has given me the entrepreneurial spirit that I have to this day. I am grateful for this gift of knowledge that my dad taught me when I was a child, it is priceless.

Fast forward to my adult days.  I graduated from the University of Central Florida in 1995 with a Business Administration degree. Not long after that, I got my first job out of college in Miami, working for a small business named Computer Data Supplies, Inc. 

It was a business-to-business sales commission job, and I provided printing supplies to businesses. I will always be grateful and was deeply inspired by the owner and my boss, Tony Ivory.  That job taught me a few lessons.

  It taught me how to overcome fear, build relationships in business, and a lesson that stands out the most is being consistent and persistent.  In my fourth month of being there, I broke the company’s sales record for the most sales in a month by a sales agent, and then again in my eighth month, as the competition in the office heated up. 

I sure miss that group, those were some good times.  I grew a lot from that job. I believe it’s those lessons from that job that gave me the foundation for starting my own company in December of 2000, Thorpe Mortgage Finance, Inc. 

When I finally got to have my own business, that is when I truly got my business education from all the hands-on experience.  I had my company for eight years before closing the doors when the economy tanked in 2008.

  Boy was that a fun ride and tons of lessons were learned there as well.  I have learned many lessons and gained a lot of wisdom and experiences over the years.  That really is my motivation for starting this blog.

  I feel I have a lot of expertise and insight that I can share which can benefit others.  The purpose of this blog will be to do just that, share, teach, recommend, and hopefully inspire.  If you have read my story to this point, thanks for getting to know a little about me.

  I have many more details to fill in but just wanted to put this out, for the time being, to get it started.  So look forward to more on this work in progress.  For now, enjoy my blog posts and the value they will bring to you. 

My journey of entrepreneurship continues here, for that spirit in me will never die.  

All the Best,

Raymond Thorpe Jr