Myron Kelly isn't a native of Knightdale, but he's been here longer than most. After a long career in academia, he's settling in to retirement in a town he's seem grow wildly during four decades.

Q: How did you make your way down South?

A: "I was born and raised in upstate New York in Lysander. I came to Raleigh in the mid 1960s to attend N.C. State graduate school. I majored in Wood and Paper Science and when I graduated, I went back to New York to work at Gordon Chemical Co., which is in the southern part of New York. I heard about a position opening at N.C. State and came back in 1972, starting as an assistant professor in the Wood Products School. In 1973, I moved to Knightdale and I have been there ever since. I retired from State in 2006."

Q: Wood and Paper Science sounds like an interesting major. What are other jobs available to graduates upon completion of the courses?

A: "They can work in furniture production. There are other jobs in the wood industry like the different aspects of saw mills and particle-board production. They can be managers and they can also work with chemicals used in wood production."

Q: Tell us about your family.

A: "My wife, Sandra, and I have been married 47 years. We have three boys and we have six grandchildren with another one on the way."

Q: Did your family decide to stay close to home?

A: "They do not live too far away. I have one son in Williamsburg, Va., one in Columbia, S.C., and one in Huntersville, which is outside Charlotte."

Q: Did any of them follow in your footsteps?

A: "No, but they are all college graduates. Maybe a grandchild might choose State."

Q: What do you do for fun?

A: "I get to travel and visit family. I like spending time with my grandkids. I also like working in the yard."

Q: Do you have much of a green thumb?

A: "Well, my wife started the garden and I took it over. I like to plant angel trumpets, which you really don't hear a lot around here since it is a tropical plant. I also plant butterfly bushes, lantana and irises."

Q: With your background in wood science, do you build?

A: "I do like to putter around. My neighbor and I did build a shed. I really can't say I build a lot but I do like to repair and I have assembled quite a few things."

Q: Are you a member of a church?

A: "My wife and I attend St. Phillip's Lutheran Church in Raleigh."

Q: With living in Knightdale for the past 38 years, you have witnessed the explosive growth. Is that what encouraged you to take a seat on the town's Land Use Review Board?

A: "Someone suggested I fill out the paperwork to serve on the board and I did. I really don't have any personal agendas or an ax to grind, I just wanted to make sure everything stayed a steady course. I like living here. The growth was really fast in Knightdale for a while but I think it has slowed down now. I think we want to make sure the town's overall appearance is good. We want to establish trees along the streets and in the shopping centers."

Q: Any other interests?

A: "I like to read and I like to watch sports on TV."

Q: I know hockey is a popular sport up North. Were you happy when the Carolina Hurricanes came to town?

A: "It is popular where I grew up but I am not really a hockey fan. I like to watch college sports and I prefer to watch basketball."

Q: Since this is the start of basketball season, you must be happy. Any particular teams that you follow?

A: "State, of course."