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On a campus with 20,000 plus students, faculty, employees and guests, there are no two people alike. Each and every person has things about them that makes them their own person.

Most don’t have a clue what the name is of the person sitting beside them in class, or passing them on campus, what they do for fun, where they are from or where they are going.

For instance, there is a young man that can be seen on campus, seldom without his cowboy hat, named Brian Reynolds. Reynolds is a history major, minoring in military science and he is this week’s Louisville Cardinal “Student of the Week.”

Reynolds comes to the University of Louisville from Poole, Ky. via a full ROTC Scholarship, which he earned at his hometown high school, Henderson County High. There he was Cadet Command Sergeant Major. That alone would be something to brag about, but dig a little deeper and there are many things about Reynolds, interesting things to talk and boast about.

Did anyone else know that there are oilfields in Kentucky? Reynolds is a fifth generation oilman. His father, Ken Reynolds, worked the oilfields his entire life as did those before him. They took him and taught him, and then he did the same for his sons, Brian and Adrian. The younger Reynolds now has his own contracting business, contracting an oilfield himself, one he works when he goes home from school.

One can feel the closeness Reynolds has with his family. There is no problem getting him to talk about them, the pride and respect shows through his words.

His mother, he proclaims, is a writer and an artist. Melinda S. Reynolds loves to draw, and prefers to draw in pencil, male angels. According to Reynolds, “[She] was tired of seeing just lady angels, she wanted to see strong male angels.” And strong, impressive, splendid male angels is what she draws.

It wasn’t always angels that Melinda Reynolds drew; she also was an editor, co-writer and illustrator for the Star Trek fanzine, the Delta Triad. Reynolds enjoys telling that his mother was chauffeur to DeForrest Kelley, best known as Dr. Leonard McCoy on the original “Star Trek,” when he would come to town.

She is a published writer and artist and just Googling her name makes for interesting as well as entertaining, reading that her son is proud of, as she continues to create today.

Reynolds tells of going to work with his brother and dad. “My first job was packing tools to Dad from the tool box.”

Reynolds is also a volunteer firefighter with the Poole Volunteer Fire and Rescue, of which his father is Chief. “Everything my dad learned, he taught us about the fire department,” said Reynolds. Reynolds has been certified for the fire department since turning 18 years old. His father has been with the department since about 1991, according to Reynolds, and it is apparent it is an important part of father and sons lives.

Reynolds is an active student at U of L working as a Resident Intern at Stevenson Hall, while juggling ROTC, L’Raisin Anglers and the College Republicans.

He enjoys assisting candidates, helping with campaigning and he felt very privileged to have the opportunity to meet Vice President Dick Cheney when he visited the area last year.

In his free time, Reynolds enjoys anything outside, like hunting, hiking and fishing.

The L’Raisin Anglers is a fishing club on campus. They host a yearly tournament for bass fishing, as well as competing in other tournaments as a club.

He hasn’t been able to participate as much as he would like due to school schedules, but enjoys it when he can.

His gun and sword collection is also a source of pride for Reynolds, as well as his medieval armor, which he keeps in his room. Reynolds is a part of the Society for Creative Anachronism, an organization dedicated to researching and re-creating European history.

They do re-enactments with the armor on campus.

“The armor is very heavy, but I get around pretty good in it,” said Reynolds, who seems to enjoy this activity a lot.

Reynolds spent almost three years in the Kentucky Army National Guard as a combat engineer before switching to armor as an m1a1 Abrams loader. “The shells are about as big as I am.” he said.

His hopes are to become an officer in the Army, his hero is General George S. Patton, Jr and he owns many books on the subject.

“I probably have more books [on Patton] than most professors do.” Reynolds said.

He doesn’t know if the army will be where he spends his working life or not.

“The army is more politically correct now than it used to be,” Reyolds said.

He may be more like Patton was, and that might get him a court martial these days.