About me and my family:

I’ve been fortunate to have lived in Lenoir City for over 10 years now with my wife Jennifer.  We have two children: a daughter, Carrie, who will be six in July and attends Kindergarten at Eaton Elementary and a son, Richard, who is three and begins preschool in the fall.  Currently, Jennifer is a stay-at-home mom and spends time as a volunteer counselor at Hope Resource Center.  As a family, we attend Covenant Ministry Center on Martel Road.

My chosen profession is banking.  I’ve been in banking for 12 years and served in managerial roles for the majority of that time.  I am currently a bank manager in Loudon.  In addition to working for a local business, I am involved in other local organizations that support the community.

• I am the current President of the Loudon Rotary Club

• I serve on the Loudon County Advisory Board for the Hope Resource Center.

• I am a member of the Loudon County Chamber of Commerce.

• I am a Loudon County Gideon.

My Background:

I grew up in Knoxville, Lenoir City, Crossville and Kingston.  I moved around a lot as a child and throughout grades K-12.  I joined the National Guard the day I turned 18, because I wanted to serve my community and country.  I graduated in 1997 from Cumberland County High School. 

In 2004, I was activated through the guard and spent the next 18 months away from home serving in Iraq for Operation Iraqi Freedom III.  I had many jobs in Iraq and completed over 100 combat and logistical missions.  During that time my daughter was born.  I returned home with a new perspective on life.  It was important for me to work close to home and be involved with the local community.  I served in the military to preserve our way of life which for me was to be a servant, that’s what I was called to do.  I have now chosen to serve people in all aspects of my life. 

Why I’m running for School Board:

Bring the focus back on education. There is so much more to a child’s education besides basic reading, writing and arithmetic. Children today are trying to learn in environments most of us never dreamed of.  Home life is often more hectic. The criteria for a kindergartner would probably have been 2^nd grade material 20 years ago. 

Schools need more resources today than ever before. Children today have emotional and psychological issues that need specialized care. I see cuts and more cuts being made and all I hear about is wasted tax dollars. I don’t know of anything more crucial to the communities we live in than investing in education. As a leader in the business community, I see and feel the impact of our current focus on education.  I know what a little more focus could bring. 

Potential businesses look at school systems when they determine where to locate.  Every citizen is directly impacted by our school system; everything from your cashier at your local grocery store to the doctors at our hospital.  A genuine focus on education will bring more money to the county than could be spent on it.  As a board member I want to be a proponent of education and advocate for it the right way, not to argue about every expense. 

Support education. That is what I can promise to do. We as a community need to tell our county officials why we need funding and local support for education. If I’m elected I can help show you, the citizens of Loudon County, why education should be important to you, too.