Master Chief Warrant Officer James Kaufman   

Character Information
Name		James Frank Kaufman
Rank		Master Chief Warrant Officer
Position		Chief of the Boat
Gender		Male
Species		Human
Age		37
Physical Appearance
Height		6’ 2”
Weight		172 lbs.
Eye Color		Green
Hair Color		Black
Physical Description		A somewhat taller than average human with an athletic build, his buzzed hairstyle and stern gaze suggest a strong military affinity. A scar cuts across his face on the left side, from the top of his cheekbone, jaggedly curving over at a lazy 90-degree arc until it ends at the man's jawline. His uniform hugs his frame, adding all the more physical intimidation to his imposing presence. He walks with a purpose though, and it is readily apparent that he puts as much time into his agility and cardiovascular fitness as he does his strength training. His uniform itself is meticulously cared for, kept free of dust and stray strings. His insignia and devices are polished to a high shine, and his real leather boots reflect the light with as much clarity as a synthetic substitute.

Personality & Traits
General Overview
Like most people who dedicate themselves to the Security profession, James knows his job requires him to distance himself from those he encounters at times, so he often comes across as blunt , and couple that with a no-nonsense attitude and one can begin to understand why James has the job he does: if the matter isn't a Security issue then he'll let you know it very quickly, and at times rather frankly too, but he still takes the time to point you to the right place to solve your problem. That's another quirk about James: when he gets engaged in a problem, it takes him an awful long time to admit defeat. He'll exhaust every resource he knows of in pursuit of a solution. He may seem distant and a "by-the-book" Security type, but given time he does find those few rare moments to put the job aside and truly make friends. He still never forgets that he's there to protect his post and his captain from whatever may come.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Perhaps his biggest strength is that James is an altruistic man, at least when it comes to someone who approaches him with a true and valid problem. He has an uncanny knack for viewing things from the perspective of the other person first, and himself second, and he'll constantly ask himself, "What are they looking for from me and how can I help them reach that?" On the flipside though, again is his rather brusk attitude when he realizes that it's not an actual issue for him, but instead something that can be attributed to misinformation, or a sheer lack of common-sense. Granted while he won't say it outright to their faces, among his friends he has been known to rant on from time to time about the ship or station population as a whole and how they seem to "forget their brains in the turbolift" when they come into his office.
Ambitions
James is comfortable where he is right now, and doesn't particularly have any large ambitions beyond his current duty assignment. He simply wants to ensure that the ship or station under his guard is kept safe from the threats that may come. An effective security force is the one that does its job but nobody ever knows is there.
Hobbies & Interests
Ancient Earth military battle reenactments on the holodeck. Samurai history.
Languages		Federation Standard & Klingon
Family
Father		Frank Samuel Kaufman, XO, USS Melbourne (NCC-62043) (Deceased)
Mother		Samantha Kaufman, bookstore owner, Earth
Brother(s)		None
Sister(s)		None
Spouse		None
Children		None
Other Family		None aware of at this time.

Born in 2353 in South Carolina on Earth to Frank and Samantha Kaufman, James' life growing up was fairly uneventful, given the relative security of Earth from the front lines of the conflicts facing the federation at that time.

His father, a descendant of a long line of military officers, always would engage James in ancient tabletop wargames, using real physical troop pieces even, instead of the more popular holographic systems. He explain to James that "In everything you do, take the time to give it that personal touch that makes it 'yours' and that will make it all the more enjoyable."

His mother runs a bookstore on Earth and deals in PADD novels, holonovels, and even the old Earth print books, for the collector who can afford them. Her philosophy is that the mind can outperform any computer holodeck any day, and she only added holonovels to her collection after years of pressure from the community.

The tranquility of the Kaufman family though was finally broken in 2367, when the Borg threat went from whispered rumors at schools and bars, to a true tangible threat at Wolf 359. Ships were pulled in from all over the Federation, most notably the USS Melbourne, where Frank Kaufman had been posted on as the Executive Officer. Unfortunately, as any history record will show, the USS Melbourne was among the long line of ships lost in that terrible conflict, along with Cmdr. Kaufman.

The younger Kaufman refused to let himself be broken by this, or let anyone else become a victim of such a horrible act if he could help it. So four years later he joined Starfleet Academy, where he majored in Security studies, his logic being if he can stop the small problems before they can become big problems for the flag officers, the quicker he can move onto the next problem, and the more he can accomplish. This was also where he developed an interest for the history of the ancient Earth Samurai culture, and also took some courses in Klingon, finding himself drawn to both cultures' concepts of battlefield honor.

Now a graduate of the Class of 2375, albeit the enlisted track, James and the rest of his class had all been expecting to be sent to the front lines in the final days of the Dominion War, after helping defend Earth from the Breen invasion. They were determined to strike back at the Dominion for attacking them right on their front dor, however the ensuing loss of time owing to care for the dead and wounded, repairing of facilities, and other immediate issues on Earth, delayed Kaufman's first posting until 2376, after the surrender was signed by the Dominion.

His first posting would turn out to be one he never thought he would get right out the door: Deep Space 9. With the end of the war and the influx of new Klingon, Cardassian, and even the occasional Dominion delegations, there was a large call for an increase of security personnel, and so the new Ensign was shipped out to help fill the gaps.

With the careful eye of Starfleet...and moreso Colonel Kira Nerys...watching over the overall happenings of the station like a microscope, it actually proved rather uneventful, the most interesting call out being a brawl between the Klingons and the Dominion in Quark's when the new Dominon delegation arrived on the station.

After 4 years there, once things began to calm down, Petty Officer Kaufman was assigned to the USS Potemkin, NCC-18253, after which he began to work his way up through the security stations over the next 10 years, and also demonstrating his knack for leadership, ultimately ending up as that ship's Chief of the Boat. His interest in the constant change of station security though had begun to gnaw at him recently though, and he requested in 2390 to possibly be reassigned to a station detail as the security chief, should a position open up.

 

2371 -- Entered Starfleet Academy

2375 -- Completed Basic Military Training and Advanced Individual Training, Starfleet. Awarded Star Cross as a Petty Officer 3rd Class for defense of Earth against the Breen Invasion.

2376 -- Assigned as Petty Officer, Security Department, DS9

2380 -- Assigned to USS Potemkin, NCC-18253

2384 -- Promoted to Chief Petty Officer, Security

2386 -- Promoted to Warrant Officer

2387 -- Appointed to Chief of the Boat, USS Potemkin

2390 -- Commissioned as Chief Warrant Officer

2390 -- Reassigned to Starfleet HQ pending transfer request to station assignment