I was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. I’ve lived the last 43 years in Lake County. My wife Sue and I spent 35 years in our house in Concord and have lived in Kirtland for the last four years. When I first moved here, I resided two years each in Willoughby and Wickliffe.
While in Michigan, I graduated from De La Salle Collegiate High School and then the University of Michigan earning a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1974 which of course means that I got to witness firsthand the Ten Years War between Bo and Woody. I finished my formal education with a master’s in industrial engineering from Wayne State University in Detroit.
My first jobs were at the Big Boys’ in Detroit and Ann Arbor. It took a lot to get rid of the smell of Big Boy Sauce every day. At Michigan, I worked at the NASA Research Lab soldering circuit boards for payloads that eventually ended up in orbit.
After graduation I worked in Field Service and Mainframe assembly for Burroughs Corporation. In 1981, I moved to Ohio when I got a job as a Quality Assurance Engineer at Allen-Bradley(A-B) in Twinsburg. That was the start of a 34-year career at A-B and Rockwell Automation. Over time, I moved on to roles in Trade Show Management, Product Marketing and eventually Sales and Technical training.
Socially, one of the first things I did after I moved was to join the Hi-Rise Ski club. That led to meeting Sue on a trip to Holiday Valley and eventually marriage. We were the very first couple married at the newly constructed St. Noel’s in Willoughby Hills on Sept. 3, 1983.
We moved to Concord in 1987 after a two-year stint in Detroit with A-B. Our first two children, Andy and Val were born in Detroit and our third, Tim, was born at Lake East in Painesville. We became very involved in both St. Gabriel’s church and, at the time, Painesville Township Schools.
At St. Gabe’s we helped launch the first festival, Sue helped teach PSR and I joined Men’s Softball Team that led to lifelong friendships that continue today.
As the kids grew, we got involved in youth sports organizations like the YMCA, CLP baseball and softball leagues and PCYB basketball. I was President of both CLP and PCYB, not simultaneously, and enjoyed coaching baseball, softball, basketball and especially flag football.
In 2000, two members of the School Board retired and after some discussion we decided that I should run. In what became an uncontested race I won election and ended up being on the Board for eight years. During that time, we oversaw a number of major projects and initiatives: the building of the new Fieldhouse through the efforts of the Riverside Community Athletic Foundation, the renovation of the stadium and football field, changing the name of the district to Riverside Schools and the purchase of the County Home and surrounding property. While this last one was controversial at the time, the vision we showed in the purchase has been beneficial to Lake County as it is now great asset in the community.
After my time at the Board was done, I became President of the Riverside Alumni Association. I also was a major contributor to the Concord Community Days having run the neighborhood softball tournament and the cornhole competition.
With retirement from Rockwell in 2017, I began volunteering as a Meals-on-Meals driver first in Painesville and now in Mentor. I also lend my time to being a Red Coat at Playhouse Square. Beside getting to see all the marvelous shows, I usually get to see some friends from Lake County enjoying an evening Downtown. I also have been a Poll worker in Concord and Waite Hill, again seeing many performing their civic duty. We are also members of Holden Arboretum, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and the Natural History Museum
Finally, I now get to perform my best role ever as Grandpa to our two grandkids who live minutes away in Kirtland.
I hope after reading this that you see why I think I am qualified and ready to serve as your next Lake County Commissioner.
