Candidate for
Member, City Council; City of Tustin

Check out my website for more information, pictures and contact information!

Growing Up - I was born in Sacramento, CA. Since my father was military, we moved away at an early age and I ended up being mostly raised in Birmingham, Alabama. The entire time I was growing up, one of my greatest desires was to come back out here to the land of my birth. I guess something just called me home. While I was growing up, I was active in my local parish, Boy Scouts (I am an Eagle Scout), Civil Air Patrol and local government. I interned for my local congressman, went to Boys' State, and participated in the local "Model Senate" program where I got to take on the persona of Pete Wilson for a week.

The College Years - Following high school, I spent my first year of college at North Carolina State University on a NROTC scholarship. From there, I went on to become a midshipman at the US Naval Academy. I realized shortly into the first year that I didn't want to be a career Naval Officer (full-time), and that it wouldn't be right to stay at the Yard if I wasn't at least willing to consider a Naval career, so I moved on. (An interesting piece of trivia: any midshipman who takes the oath on induction day to become a midshipman at the beginning of plebe summer is considered an alumnus.) I received an AS degree in Engineering Studies from Mesa Community College in San Diego and a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, San Diego.

The Working Years - I began working for PLG, Inc. an Engineering Consulting firm in 1991. We did Risk Assessments on Nuclear Power plants, chemical refineries and more. Being a consultant, I used to say that our job was to get you the least bang for your buck. :) While at PLG, I also ran the computer department for 2 years and learned about networking, development and Open Source Software. Then for about 1.5 years, I was on contract to a local refinery in the LA area. During this time, I earned my Professional Engineer's registration in Mechanical Engineering and my Associate Safety Professional registration. I got fed up with commuting to LA and realized that I was doing much of the same type of work I had been doing for awhile - it was time to move on. So I applied for my current job at the Orange County Fire Authority, where I regulate Risk Management Plans, Hazardous Materials and try to figure out ways to save our cities money while providing better service. I have also attended the National Fire Academy for professional development courses.

My Own Businesses - While working, I have also built two small start-up businesses. I do computer and engineering consulting for local firms (You have to keep practicing to stay up to date.) and I have self-released two albums of my own music.

Family Life - Shortly after college, I went to a young adult church meeting and met the lady who was to become my wife - Stephanie Nevin. She was born 8 days after I was, and as you can see from her maiden name, she didn't have to change her signature much, when we got married. After spending much time together, and realizing that we loved each other very much, we tied the knot on April 19, 1997. We now live in a home that we bought in Tustin and we've just added a new member to the family: a chocolate lab with some chow in her. Her name is Mocha and many of you know her from the Concerts in the Park. We don't have any children yet, but we're working on it. We'll keep you posted!