Alan Cutter grew up in a pastor's family in Massachusetts, spending long summers at the family home in Southern Maine. Following in his Father's footsteps, he became a pastor, but only after serving on active duty in the US Navy for five years. This included a tour of duty in Vietnam. His pastorates were in Maine, New York, West Virginia and Minnesota; his last call was to be a church executive in South Louisiana following the trauma of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. When he was diagnosed with Agent Orange-related Parkinson's Disease in 2010, having previously been diagnosed with post-traumatic