A career in service
I have served as a Naval lieutenant, a clinical psychologist, a school psychologist and as an executive administrator in public schools.
As the associate superintendent of a Wayne County public school district for nearly 10 years, I led the district from decades of deficit spending to a reserve that still sits in the millions of dollars. I understand budgets, and I understand the challenges facing school districts today.
I was born and raised in southeast Michigan, and except for my time in the military I have lived here all my life. After college, I served as a United States naval officer. I learned leadership and about the deep commitment of our troops and their families.
My father joined the merchant marines when he was 17, because his mother wouldn’t give permission for him go into combat; she already had 3 sons in the war. When my father ended his tour, he was drafted into the infantry and sent to Okinawa – one of the bloodiest campaigns in WWII.
He rose quickly through the enlisted ranks and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal. My father died at 36, when I was a year old, his death almost certainly due to fallout from the atomic bomb detonated on Hiroshima.
My family roots in this nation run deep.
My mother always insisted her grandmother was native American. My father’s ancestors arrived in 1635 and helped establish Jamestown. They defended our nation in every war and conflict except the Spanish-American War.
I share this background, because this is my foundation. I, like all Americans, stand on the shoulders of my ancestral giants, individuals who scraped and fought and bled for this country and its constitution.
I am running for the Michigan House not for personal gain, but because I believe it is my duty – to my children and their children’s children, to those who cut the path to America before me, and to all Americans who want integrity, stability and sanity in their representatives.