A Burlington native, I grew up in the same house my whole life. My father worked in law enforcement, and my mother took care of the family home until she went to work at a local factory when my siblings and I went to school in the Burlington school district. I attended Burlington Community High School, and graduated in the class of 2003.
Following graduation, I joined the United States Navy, where I served on active duty as a military police officer until I left the service in late 2008. During my time stationed abroad, I met my wife Sophie. We fell in love, and I was so blessed to have her move back to Iowa with me to start our lives together.
After returning to Iowa, my wife and I enrolled in school at Southeastern Community College. I worked towards my degree in public policy, while she completed her degree to become a Registered Nurse. This was a challenging time, myself working three jobs and my wife working two we were determined to make ends meat; and, in 2013 I graduated from Western Illinois University with a degree in Political Science and Economics. Shortly after graduation from WIU, I started my career as a local Shelter Insurance agent in Burlington.
My wife and I started a family in 2011, welcoming our first daughter Elin into the world. Olivia, our second child, arrived soon after that, further humbling us and reminding us that parenting is not an easy job – but one we sure love and embrace. Our family experienced the all too real heartache of loss in 2016 We lost our 3rd child Mia during childbirth, and our family prayed and prayed for the opportunity to have just one more child. God blessed us with our son Jacob in 2018, and our fourth child Lillian in 2020. My wife and I currently work in Southeast Iowa, and our children attend local schools.
In 2013 I started my career as a local Insurance Agent. I chose insurance because I saw it as an opportunity to help people when they needed it the most. Insurance is about being there when people need you, and that is something that I have always enjoyed doing.
As a small business owner, I have learned that hard work and dedication can lead to success. Taking care of your clients and their families is always number one, but it requires lots of late nights and early mornings to make a business run. Like most small business owners, I wear many hats, and this has allowed me to understand the importance of businesses and business owners in our communities.
After being elected to the Burlington City Council in November of 2017, I began working on the 80-million-dollar budget process that happens annually as a city councilman. The budget process was an eye-opening and informative experience because I quickly learned how much local government could impact the daily lives of those in the communities that we serve. It may be surprising, but local government can have a more significant impact than any other level of government. Therefore, it is essential to have support at the state and federal level for our locally elected officials to identify, support, and move our needs forward.
While serving as a Burlington City Councilman, I have worked closely on several city projects, including the Burlington Riverfront Masterplan and Burlington’s long-term Community Investment Plan (CIP). I have also served as the city representative on several committees and boards, including The Burlington Bees, Economic Development, Southeast Iowa Regional Planning, and the Southeast Iowa Riverboat Commission.
At a young age, I learned the importance of volunteering and giving back to your community. In 2014 I started a partnership with local law enforcement agencies called Southeast Iowa’s first Shop with a Cop were third graders are paired up with officers and they spend the day doing team building and shopping for Christmas. This event has helped strengthen the relationship between our community’s youth and local law enforcement officers.
Over the last six years serving as a Burlington Rotary Club member, I have supported our local mission is to improve literacy and to ensure there is a book in the home of every local child. In 2017, I was one of a few individuals who traveled to Beirut, Lebanon, to provide support to Syrian refugees who needed assistance. I have also served in many other capacities with organizations such as the Burlington Education Foundation, The Des Moines Community Foundation, and The Southeast Community College Booster Club.
On the morning of September 11th, 2001, I was sitting in Mr. Gibson’s geometry class when news of the attack on the World Trade Center interrupted our lesson. The event was a defining moment in my life because I knew right then my country was going to need young people like myself to stand up and defend and protect us. In the coming months, I signed up and left for the US Navy. After attending the law enforcement academy in San Antonio, Texas, I was stationed in El Centro, California and worked as a patrol officer. In 2005, I volunteered for deployment to Iraq.
While in Iraq, I spent most of my time providing force protection for a forward operating base FOB Suse and eventually moved to logistics at FOB Warrior in Kirkuk. During my time in Irag, I became a leader. I truly learned how teamwork and determination could play a significant role in your personal development and tour future successes.
After my time serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom, I was stationed in Souda Bay Crete in the country of Greece. Here, I worked in base force protection as a watch commander and patrol officer. In 2008, two years later, I was discharged from Active duty Navy. Shortly after that, I enrolled in the Naval Reserves, where I served until my discharge in early 2013.
Drive through any town in Southeast Iowa, and it is clear that economic development is one of the biggest issues facing all communities. As the global economy expands, we must consider the contribution and importance of small towns and businesses across the globe and evolve the way we attract new businesses to these communities. We must make plans to create opportunities and prepare to compete for new and high paying jobs to sustain growth.
We need to be more aggressive in drawing new companies to the state, while also making it easy for existing companies to grow and be successful in Iowa. I have a three-part plan to help Iowa’s economy grow, and make sure all Iowans have the opportunity to succeed.
Iowa ranks #1 in the nation for opportunity, but 18th in the nation in the quality of our education system. We have to put teachers and students first, and we cannot continue to let Iowa’s education system continue to slide without paying the long-term cost of doing so. Fixing education comes down to two things; First, let educators educate! They know their communities, schools, and students. Allow them to do what they are passionate about, and support them the best way we know how. Second, we have to prioritize funding schools and educations programs at a higher level then we are today. If cost continue to go up as they have been, increasing funding at our current rates are only going to continue to negatively impact our communities’ schools, teachers, and students.
This is Iowa. Farming is what we do, and for a long time not only has our local economies been influenced by the health of the farming industry, but it has been a large part of what defines us. As we continue to move into a global economy, it is going to be vital that we work to establish new trade partners both nationally and abroad.
As a state, we need to continue to promote the use of ethanal while also diminishing Iowa’s reliance on the production of ethanol. The longer we wait, the more difficult it will become. The constant influence of gas and oil companies on lawmakers in Washington will eventually result in the removal of ethanol requirements in our fuel mixers. By working on establishing new markets, creating new products, and promoting a variation in crops, we can potentially diminish the effects this will have on Iowa farmers.
Another key component to Iowa’s success in agriculture is creating new polices that promote opportunities for new family-owned farms, and taking down barriers that are hurting family farms in Iowa today.
Southeast Iowa has seen its fair share of violent crime over the last decade, especially in our more urban areas. After working with several local law enforcement agencies, I discovered a need for stiffer penalties for felon’s who are in possession of firearms. I will make it my number one priority to create legislation to increase the penalty to get and keep these felons off of our streets. I believe we can increase the chance of curbing crime in Southeast Iowa.
I will take the necessary steps, once in Des Moines to create programs that cut prescription costs, lower health insurance premiums, and phase out the private for-profit organizations that stand between Iowans and their healthcare. Our role as policy makers is to eliminate barriers between Iowans and the healthcare they so desperately.
