Maine Roots
I grew up in Presque Isle, Maine, the oldest of three adopted children in my family. My parents both came from hard working, dedicated families, with a bit of farming in their background. I loved the tranquility and comfort of Presque Isle, and still miss the serene summer mornings that kicked off with low flying spray planes, and potato blossoms in July. After high school, I landed at the University of Southern Maine (go Huskies!), with a desire to pursue law and politics as my future career.
I fell in love with Portland and immersed myself in all aspects of southern Maine life that I never had back home. I worked diligently to learn from key individuals in the political sphere and jumped at any opportunity to be on campaigns and in political positions. I graduated with a B.S. in Political Science and a minor in Economics. During my final year of school, I met my wife through mutual friends. We dated for a few years and married in 2012 (and have since welcomed two baby boys to our family).
In the later part of 2012, I felt a calling to pursue ministry work and decided to become a Pastor. I enrolled at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in Massachusetts, one of the best schools for preparation into the ministry field. After being there for three years, my wife and I yearned to come back to Maine. It was time to come home to begin ministry, despite having partly completed my academics.
Returning Home
I would later complete my Master of Divinity in 2019, but it was that homecoming that brought us to the hidden gem of New Gloucester. After finding a great house in this wonderful neck of the woods, I began to take on pastoral jobs in and around Maine. Now with two little boys rounding out the family, we felt New Gloucester provided us the best place to raise kids. It was here that I could feel the calm and tranquility I enjoyed in my home town of Presque Isle, while still being close to the many great cities and towns of Maine.
Initially, we learned about New Gloucester and our own home through our neighbors, who had been part of the community for a bit longer. We were drawn to New Gloucester’s rich history, and the more we settled in the more we loved exploring our growing community, such as Friday night pizza at the Village Store and afternoon walks at Pineland Farms.
Every year we are in New Gloucester we become more embedded in the many aspects of the town and its life. It feels like just a few months ago, we were celebrating our son’s first birthday at Thompson’s Orchards, right down the road from our house. Now as our family has grown, so does my desire to help New Gloucester thrive for many more years to come, both as my family’s home and as a welcoming home to anyone lucky enough to land here.
Forward Vision
Today, although I have experienced many levels and aspects of racism, from school, church, and my surroundings, the murder of George Floyd sparked my decision to step away from ministry and pursue advocacy for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). My previous passions and desires in law and politics became amplified to take on work towards ending racism in all forms in every community in Maine. My hope is to be a change agent for the lives of Black and Brown members in Maine and New England. While my work takes me North and South in Maine, my heart is always in New Gloucester, the only place we have lived since coming back home.
Now we take a step forward to serve both the New Gloucester Community, and other rural municipalities as well. With my 3 years as a Municipal Officer, my background and education, I am looking to continue using my voice for the people of Maine. While we are grappling with many difficult issues, I want to continue leading people forward together. As I lean on these deep roots I have in Maine, I look to plant promising seeds for the future and a vision towards something greater for all of our towns.