Rolly Brook, a former Lampasas resident, has written a book on his Mexico adventures. Most people are lucky to receive even modest praise for their achievements, but former Lampasas resident Rollins “Rolly” Brook has been hailed by peers as a pioneer in two very different fields of endeavor.

Despite more than a dozen years in retirement, the veteran electroacoustical engineer is still being cited as an “industry influence.”

An article in the Audio Engineering Society journal has named him among the pioneers of computerized sound systems for large performing arts theaters.

Brook also has been listed twice in “Who’s Who in Entertainment.”

With a background in the broadcasting and recording industries, Brook spent 14 years in the architectural acoustics department of the pre-eminent, Boston-based firm Bolt Beranek and Newman. He then established his own consulting company in Los Angeles and served an international clientele for a decade.

Brook got his start as a disk jockey for KHIT (later KCYL) radio during his Lampasas High School days in the late 1940s. Back then he was known as Rollins, son of Dr. W.M Brook, who with Dr. H.B. Rollins founded the local hospital in 1935.

“Rolly” is a nickname he acquired while a student at the University of Denver, and it has been his name ever since.

For the past decade, Brook has lived in Mexico, and is blazing new trails in cyberspace with his Web site, www.rollybrook.com.

The site has had more than a million visits from 23 countries and has helped thousands with the complexities of moving south of the border.

“I started the Web site to share pictures of my Mexican adventure with family and friends back in the States,” Brook explained in recent e-mail notes on his career and retirement.

“Little by little it grew in size, content and visitors, taking on a life of its own.”

Brook has posted information on a wide range of such practical matters as laws and governmental regulations, insurance, buying real estate and having a car in Mexico.

The site also contains Spanish glossaries for cooking terms, computers, car parts, building materials, household items -- and a medical dictionary.

Online search results for “Rolly Brook” yield testimonials from forums, blogs and those who have started their own “so-you-want-to-livein Mexico” Web sites for would-be “expats” (expatriates).

They variously refer to Rolly as “everyone’s favorite “Mex-pat,” “our guru” and “the Venerable Rolly Brook.” Yet another fan has asked a rhetorical question: “Where would we be without this tireless pioneer?”