Joshua Sheppard

From Memory-Zeta

Categories: Retired Characters | Human | Command | Diplomatic | USS Pegasus

Captain Joshua Sheppard (Retired)

Full Name

Joshua Sheppard

Alias(es)

None

Position

Retired

Species

Human Male

Born

April 2, 2343 (Age: 43)

Homeworld

Earth

OUT OF CHARACTER

Status

Non-Player Character

Played by

Dave Patterson

Affiliation

U.S.S. Pegasus NCC-53847-E

Actor

Captain Joshua Sheppard was briefly the Commanding Officer of the USS Pegasus (NCC-53847-E) before retiring from Starfleet.

[edit] BACKGROUND

Joshua Sheppard began attending classes at Starfleet Academy in the fall of 2359. The first year consisted of General Studies, a course designed to allow new cadets to become accustomed to life as a Starfleet Officer. Josh spent the better part of his childhood around Starfleet Officers and as a result he had little trouble adjusting to life as a member of Starfleet. His grades for the first year were above average.

2360 saw Josh begin his second year at the Academy, the first of his Diplomatic/JAG training. He also took some extra classes in piloting and by the time he graduated, Josh was qualified to fly most of Starfleet’s auxiliary craft including Runabouts, shuttles etc. His grades for this year were again above average and after a couple of stumbles during the early training simulations; Josh found his footing and was performing well in these simulations.

The third year, for the most part, continued the trend which began in the first two years. There was a slight dip in his grades near the beginning of the first semester when he started dating fellow cadet Rachel Owens. They began improving again by the beginning of the next semester. The fourth, and final, year was almost disastrous. In early 2363 Rachel announced she was pregnant and this caused both their grades to fall dramatically and the pair considered dropping out to raise their family. Eventually they decided to keep at it and managed to graduate from the Academy. A couple of months later Rachel gave birth to twins, Elizabeth and Benjamin.

Upon graduating from the Academy in 2363, Josh and Rachel were promoted to Ensign and both assigned to JAG Headquarters at Starfleet Command. This was an assignment they both welcomed because it gave them a chance to be together and to begin raising their family in a somewhat stable environment on Earth. Josh’s first year as a Judge Advocate at JAG HQ consisted mainly of paperwork and helping out on investigations. It wasn’t until 2364 that Josh entered the courtroom as an attorney.

His performance was excellent during the case and he managed to win his first time out. It allowed his superiors to see that, despite his mediocre grades at the Academy, he was a decent trial lawyer and as a result he received more and more proper cases.

In 2365 Josh was promoted to Lieutenant j.g. and reassigned to the Renaissance-class USS Ark Ryoal as a Diplomatic Officer. Rachel remained on Earth with Ben and Liz. Josh spent a year on the Ark Royal where he displayed a talent for the job and that; once again, his Academy grades were not a true representation of his abilities but of a somewhat distracting personal life during that time. Josh was only on the Ark Royal for about a year when she was destroyed in a skirmish with an unknown force. Lieutenant Sheppard was one of the officers to make it to the escape pods and survive the incident. He briefly considered resigning his commission following the Ark Royal's destruction but his wife convinced him to remain in the service and Josh soon received new orders.

In 2366 Josh reported for duty aboard the Nebula-class USS Phoenix once again as a Diplomatic Officer. The next year the Phoenix’s Commanding Officer, Captain Benjamin Maxwell, believed that the Cardassians were rearming in preparation for an attack on the Federation. Josh was one of several officers to protest this vigilante type action but his protests fell on deaf ears and it was only the intervention of the USS Enterprise under the Command of Captain Picard that stopped any further killing.

Josh was promoted to Lieutenant in 2368 and soon after assigned to another Nebula-class starship, the USS Prometheus. Along with this transfer came a promotion to Assistant Chief Diplomatic Officer and the chance to be with his family once again; Rachel also requested assignment to the Prometheus. Josh and Rachel spent the next four years on the Prometheus, Josh serving as both Assistant Chief and Chief Diplomatic Officer. He enjoyed the chance to assist the Captain in making contact with several new cultures encountered during the course of the Prometheus’ missions.

2372 saw both Josh and Rachel transferred to Starbase 260 as Staff Judge Advocates and at the same time they were both promoted to Lieutenant Commander. Josh missed exploring the galaxy and meeting new cultures but this assignment allowed him to practice law again, something he hadn’t done since his days at JAG Headquarters. By the time his assignment at Starbase 260 came to an end, the threat of war was looming. The Cardassian Union had allied itself with the Dominion and the chances of war were increasing with each passing day.

Because of this danger Federation Ambassadors were ordered to try and gain whatever support they could with the non aligned races which could help during a possible war. Josh was assigned as an aide to Ambassador Catherine Nelson in order to help her do this. When war did break out at the end of 2373 Josh was kept on the Ambassador’s staff and was involved in her continuing negotiations with the non aligned worlds. Ambassador Nelson was also involved in a couple of negotiations with the Dominion into putting an end to the war during the early stages but these were generally ploys by the Dominion to misdirect the Federation. Josh and Nelson were also part of the team who negotiated the terms of the surrender of the Dominion at the end of the war and were present in the Wardroom on Deep Space Nine when the female shapeshifter signed the document.

With the Dominion War over, Josh was assigned to Starbase 310 as a Staff Judge Advocate, as was Rachel. During the four years that Josh served on Starbase 310 his main function was as a trial attorney. He was promoted to Commander in 2377 and made head of the Legal Services Office on Starbase 310, while still retaining the title of Staff Judge Advocate.

By 2379 he was beginning to feel the call of exploration once again so he and Rachel put in for transfer to a starship’s Diplomatic department. In 2380 their wish was granted and Starfleet transferred to couple to the Galaxy-class USS Galaxy with Josh as the Chief Diplomatic Officer and Rachel as the Assistant Chief. Josh loved his time on the Galaxy, exploring the furthest reaches of Federation space and traveling to new worlds, meeting new civilizations.

In 2383 Starfleet issued the couple new orders. To report aboard the Akira-class USS Pegasus as her new Chief Diplomatic Officer and Rachel, who wanted to step back from the responsibilities of helping lead the department, took the position of Diplomatic Officer/Staff Judge Advocate. He was elevated to Executive Officer in 2383 when Commander Chris Stephens was made Acting Commanding Officer.

[edit] STARFLEET SERVICE RECORD

2359 - 2360	General Studies Cadet	Starfleet Academy
2360 - 2361	Diplomatic/JAG Cadet	Starfleet Academy
2361 - 2362	Diplomatic/JAG Cadet	Starfleet Academy
2362 - 2363	Diplomatic/JAG Cadet	Starfleet Academy
2363 - 2365	Judge Advocate	Starfleet Command
2365 - 2366	Diplomatic Officer	USS Ark Royal NCC-51032
2366 - 2368	Diplomatic Officer	USS Phoenix NCC-65420
2368 - 2370	Assistant Chief Diplomatic Officer	USS Prometheus NCC-71201
2370 - 2372	Chief Diplomatic Officer	USS Prometheus NCC-71201
2372 - 2373	Staff Judge Advocate	Starbase 260
2373 - 2376	Aide to Ambassador Nelson	Various Locations
2376 - 2377	Staff Judge Advocate	Starbase 210
2377 - 2380	Staff Judge Advocate	Starbase 210
2380 - 2383	Chief Diplomatic Officer	U.S.S. Galaxy NCC-70637
2383	Chief Diplomatic/JAG Officer	U.S.S. Pegasus NCC-53847-D
2383 - 2384	Executive Officer & CDO/JAG Officer	U.S.S. Pegasus NCC-53847-D
2384 - 2385	Student	Starfleet Defense College
2385 - 2386	Acting Commanding Officer	U.S.S. John Glenn NCC-85290
2386 - 2386	Acting Commanding Officer	U.S.S. Pegasus NCC-53847-E
2386 - Present	Retired	Earth

[edit] PERSONAL APPEARANCE

Height: 6' 1"
Weight: 162lbs
Hair Colour: Brown
Eye Colour: Blue
Skin Tone: Caucasian (Tanned)
Physique/Frame: Athletic
Distinguishing Features: None

[edit] PERSONAL INFORMATION

Parents:
Father - Dr. Dylan Sheppard, Chief of Staff, Jacksonville General Hospital
Mother - Admiral Miranda Sheppard, Military Advisor, Office of the President of the United Federation of Planets

Sibling(s):
Brother - Lieutenant Commander Jack Sheppard, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Starbase 11
Sister - Lieutenant Commander Kelly Sheppard, Squadron Commanding Officer, Carrier Air Wing Five (CVW-5)

Marital Status:
Married
Spouse - Commander Rachel Sheppard

Children:
Son - Petty Officer 2nd Class Benjamin Sheppard, Engineer, U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln NCC-78246
Daughter - Lieutenant j.g. Elizabeth Sheppard, Staff Judge Advocate, Starbase 121

Likes: Captain Sheppard enjoys tea (especially Lemon and Mint), pasta dishes, running and sports in general.
Dislikes: Josh doesn't like coffee or those disrespectful of other people.
Strengths: Sheppard is an experienced diplomatic and legal officer who is highly regarded by his peers.
Limitations: Captain Sheppard can sometimes become so narrow focused that he misses the 'big picture'.
Special Abilities: Josh can recite the name of every astronaut who flew for NASA during the 20th Century and what mission or missions they flew on.
Ambitions: Captain Sheppard hopes to become an Admiral and Judge Advocate General of Starfleet someday.
Quirks: When onboard a ship, Josh usually carries a small blue racquetball, which he will bounce of the floor or a nearby wall when deep in thought or frustrated.
Hobbies/Interests: Sheppard enjoys running, hiking, listening to music, rugby, soccer and reading about manned spaceflight from it's beginning in the 20th Century until the modern day.