About
Descended from more than five generations of Mainers from The County to the coast I was born in Cleveland, Ohio. I happily moved to Aroostook County in the summer of 1999 even though I had been coming to Maine to visit family since I was a child. Aroostook County has adopted me with open arms as one of its own. I am incredibly grateful and indebted, for I have found my home here. My family has a long history in Maine; my roots and my heritage are in Maine, along with most of my family who live right here in The County.
I moved here after falling in love with the area while visiting — despite being raised a city boy. As a former Boy Scout, I have always enjoyed the outdoors, including camping, hiking, and snowshoeing in these great Aroostook winters (although this past one was something else). I love The County for the lifestyle, the relaxed pace, and the quality of life it has to offer. I am committed, even as a young person, to having a successful life for myself here.
When I look around this wonderful area, I see opportunity. I find it frustrating that young people here don’t often see it or take advantage of it. There are many reasons behind that, much of which is perception, but there are real factors that do discourage youth and business from staying and growing here. It’s not just a matter of getting people to see the opportunities that are available — it’s about changing the climate in Maine to encourage business to stay and expand, and to create not just more jobs but higher paying ones. All this will not only help keep youth here, but entice those who have moved away to return;
a trend that I think some have started to notice. We need to do more to encourage this change.
In 2000 I earned my GED from Caribou High School. My high school education was through home schooling and I wanted the experience of marching with my peers to receive a formal diploma. In typical County fashion, the community was incredibly supportive. Currently, I work as a self employed consultant
, and graduated from the University of Maine at Presque Isle with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management Information Systems. I’ve traveled extensively, and as a member of the Business Club I helped plan and organize the UMPI Technology Fair three years in a row, an event aimed at trying to increase local business access to technology.
A former member of the Presque Isle Zoning Board of Appeals, and am the current Chair of the Aroostook County Republican Committee. I am a former State House candidate, having run for office in HD5 in ‘06 and HD7 in ‘08. I also consulted on and work for several other political campaigns, mostly technology and strategy related. I am currently working on developing a business consulting service for small businesses wanting to advertise on social networking sites like Facebook.
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