Les was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. He attended Hadley Technical High School where, due to his height, he was recruited to their basketball team, his first organized sport. He then went on to become the second highest scorer in St. Louis during his senior year. He received a full basketball scholarship and graduated with a Bachelors of Education from Southeast Missouri State College. He was honored to play on the team that finished second in the nation in the 1961 NCAA Division II Basketball Championship. 

If you knew Les, you knew him to be larger than life in more ways than one. He was a fun-loving and entertaining man with a fantastic smile and endless wit. He was a natural born leader as well as a great husband and father. Les worked for various insurance companies throughout his life and eventually opened his own agency. One of Les' passions was the Bible studies he led for many decades.