Bio

Background

I am a communications professional who specializes in education, persuasion, mobilization, and fundraising for political campaigns and nonprofits.

Growing Up

Born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, I was raised on hog farms in Colorado, Oklahoma, and Kansas until I turned 10. By the 1990s my mom’s hard work earning her teaching degree and my dad’s unflagging work ethic helped us climb into the middle class.

Growing up, I was drawn to the passion and advocacy to be found in the works of artists like Fishbone, The Clash, Dead Kennedys, and Public Enemy. and in comic books like X-Men, Captain America, and DC’s Vertigo line of comics. Each new narrative and perspective encouraged critical thinking, sparking curiosity about the wider world and how I could make it a better place. 

I was a high school debater and, during college, the drummer in a regionally touring ska-punk band.

Producing concert flyers, websites, and email newsletters taught me the ropes of DIY marketing and event and product promotion. I also began to speak out on issues of justice, opportunity, and fairness, especially poverty, human rights, and environmental protection.

Adulting

Washington, DC, was my post-graduation destination. What began as summer fellowship for Taxpayers for Common Sense ultimately led to my 17-year career working in the nation’s capital. There, I helped lead communications, digital organizing, and online fundraising at The Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, Defenders of Wildlife, Women Thrive Worldwide, and Care2. In 2012, I also served as the Obama campaign’s state digital director in New Mexico.

In spring 2015, my wife and I moved to Denver, Colorado, where I have worked for Pop Culture Classroom and as a consultant.