I have worked in chemical and plastics industry as an engineer and a manager throughout my career. I hold degrees in Chemical Engineering, Public Policy, and Business
Administration. Through my career, I have worked in project management, budgeting, customer relations, design, site planning and quality. I have extensive experience working with federal and state agencies. My most recent experience with workforce development is managing DOL and EDA grants promoting manufacturing careers in West Central Ohio, which has focused me on recruiting people into manufacturing careers. That position has also made me acutely aware of the need for targeted outreach to help employers fill their workforce needs.

My family moved to Allen County in 1994. I was working in New Jersey at the time when my
company decided to shut down the plant where I worked. My wife and I were looking for a
stable, rural community where we could raise our children and live in a country setting. Allen
County offered a nice balance between country living and access to everything that we needed in the way of shopping, schools, and family activities. We settled in Amanda Township in the Spencerville School District, which was rated second only to Bluffton at the time. I liked the area because it reminded me of the area where I grew up in Smith Township, PA. That area had many dairy farms when I was a boy and I spent time helping my uncle on his little farm.
Summers were spent picking and selling sweet corn. We would go on vacation to my other
uncle’s farm in Wisconsin where the kids spent the day harvesting cucumbers and green beans.

I wanted similar surrounding for my children. We became Allen County residents by
choice, seeing great potential in the community. We volunteered in scouting where my wife
was a Den Leader in Pack 37 and I was Cubmaster. I also served as Scoutmaster of Troop 2 in
Spencerville and Assistant Scoutmaster in Troop 106 in Shawnee. I coached roller hockey in the LPDEC Program for 20 Summers as each of my 3 sons skated in the program. Our family
enjoyed watching the kids participate in football, wrestling, basketball, cheerleading, and the
tradition continued with my grandsons playing baseball, soccer, and track. We managed to
work 4H into our schedule. Our daughters were active in equestrian events and sewing and our sons showed market hogs and chickens. As a family, our favorite 4H event involved raising service dogs as part of the Pilot Dog Program, which provides seeing eye dogs to those in need. Our son made a couple of trips to State Fair with those projects.

Allen County has been a great place to raise our six children to appreciate family values in our
community. As commissioner, I will help spread the word that Allen County is an excellent place for our young people to settle!