I grew up in rural Indiana. My father was a union factory worker for General Electric and a farmer. My mother held a variety of government jobs, including working in food stamps, foster care, and the Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office. I learned values around hard work, solidarity, and community service from my parents that I carry to this day.

I went to K-12 in the Bloomington, IN school system. I studied Religion and Classics at Wabash College. I did a variety of work after college, including being an archaeologist in Greece and Indiana, a project manager at the IU Center for Survey Research, and I was lucky enough to meet my partner Melissa while we worked together at a local TV station in my hometown.

In 2008, we rode our bikes from the midwest to Oregon and down the coast to California. It was a media project continuing some of our previous TV work documenting community sustainability solutions, and we eloped in Muir Woods at the end of the trip. That journey was my first time experiencing the beauty of Oregon and planted a seed for wanting to return here someday.

After deciding to focus on doing community and government work, I went to graduate school for Public Administration at Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs. I majored in Sustainable Development and Policy Analysis and interned in both the IU Office of Sustainability and the IU Transportation Department (Bus, Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Parking services for a university campus serving just under 50,000 students). My focus in both roles was reducing climate impacts on campus and in the community.

After a three-year stint teaching English in South Korea, I moved to Astoria in 2015 to take a job with Clatsop Behavioral Healthcare (CBH), and since that time I’ve worked in health care analysis: first with CBH, then with Greater Oregon Behavioral Health Inc, and now with the Oregon Health Authority. I currently serve as the senior analyst for the Oregon Health Care Workforce Reporting Program, which collects data on licensed health care workers and presents analysis for planning to the Oregon Legislature and Governor’s Office.

I’ve been active in community organizations and local politics for several years. In Astoria, this started with serving on the Clatsop County Budget Committee from 2017-2021, the last two years as Chair. I also served on the Astoria Budget Committee from 2018-2022 and was Chair of the Clatsop County Comprehensive Plan Update’s Citizen Advisory Committee from 2019-2022. I’m also a member of the Copeland Commons Board, a nonprofit working to restore and rebuild a derelict building in downtown Astoria to provide around 60 units of workforce housing.

In the past 4 years, I’ve been honored to serve as the Ward 1 representative to Astoria’s City Council. I’ll be moving out of the ward at the end of my term, so I’ll be unable to continue as Ward 1 Councilor and am not seeking re-election.

From the time Melissa and I moved to Astoria, I’ve rented an apartment in Ward 1. Two years ago, we bought a multi-unit house in Ward 3. Since then I’ve continued to rent and live in Ward 1, but I look forward to moving to my new permanent home after my current term is up.