The Back Story
Obsession Found
Born with a wanderlust in upstate New York, my path has never been a straight line. My formative years were spent in Rhode Island, enthralled with photography and the idea of visual story telling. With a Bachelor’s of Science from Ithaca College in Cinema and Photography I headed out to explore the American West. Settling in various regions of Colorado, pursuing a career in the fine arts, inspired by the work of Edward Weston, and fellow members of the legendary F64 Club, I stood still as the wave of the digital revolution crashed over me.
In the blink of an eye, the technology in a cell phone could create images of higher quality than my heroes achieved on their best days. A democratization of photography, nearly wiped out an industry. Seeing the writing on the wall, I changed direction: taking time to reevaluate goals and direction, couch surfing from the Mission District in San Francisco to road tripping across the county, notably sharing a cup of tea with Allen Ginsberg.
Moving to rural northern California, settling in the coastal gem of Arcata, working as a bagel maker and a carpenter, I saw the need to help other people, especially representing the United States through service in the post 911 era. I joined the United States Peace Corps, and shipped out to remote Abemama Island, in the Republic of Kiribati. Working on community development projects and teaching school, while living a subsistence lifestyle with no electricity or plumbing. Interestingly, living a stone’s throw from where Robert Louise Stevenson lived in 1889.
Leaving the Peace Corps with a renewed vigor for the amazing land of my birth and freshly engaged, my fiance and I landed in Knoxville, Tennessee, where we both taught mental health education to grade school children. The west coast was beckoning, and before long we were back in California living in South Lake Tahoe, spending more time with bears and trout than people. Here I met a kindred spirit and mentor Eric Jarvis, who rekindled my love of photography and showed me the true potential of Adobe Photoshop. I was surprisingly back in the photography industry, but now I had gotten my first, distilled taste of what I truly loved about photography. the power of images and words to speak to people.
In my time working with Eric Jarvis, I had a realization, that though I was an artist at heart...my soul was that of a marketer, someone who can convey an idea and create demand. I took a marketing job for a local company back in Arcata, where my wife and I first met. After a lot of looking, had finally found my passion. They say the word passion is over used, so how about I use the word obsession.
As dove head long into the early days of Facebook marketing, I met two additional mentors. Dennis Rael, the owner of Los Bagels, and Charlie Jordan, who was GM, but soon left to follow her own entrepreneurial dreams. To this say, these two marketing and business experts act as sounding boards and occasional salmon fishing partners.
My wife and I had our first son and bought a house, the fence isn't white picket...but the essence is the same.
During this time I started volunteering with a Humboldt Made, a group dedicated to marketing all the great businesses in our local community to the "outside world." This opened up opportunities across the business community, and about six year ago I came on at the Sun Valley Floral Farms, marketing cut flowers nationwide. The thrill of working with the largest retailers in the United States never gets old. During this time we launched a novel concept in the floral industry, offering wine and flowers delivered in the same box.
work in progress
Community Involvement / Giving Back
Time is the most valuable resource we can share with our community.
2018 - Present - Commissioner on the Economic Development Committee for the City of Eureka, CA.
2013 - Present - Promotions Committee Member, California Cut Flower Commission.
2010 - Present - Boardmember Member, Humboldt Made.
