I am grateful for this opportunity to grow in Rotary with you all.  Thank you!  I look forward to sharing many Rotary experiences with you all over the next several decades.  My Rotary path began with the Rotary Club of La Crosse in 2009. 
 

In my daily life (whether it be work, family, Rotary, etc.), I tend to ask lots of questions in an attempt to understand the ultimate question -- “Why?” My approach to leadership, problem solving and more broadly - life in general - is very easy to explain and can be summarized using three straightforward principles:
 

Keep Things Simple.

Explain “Why?”

Show Everyone Respect

 

These three principles are a great start to getting to know me.  Once we get past those core ideas, my interests expand to include accounting (yes – I am an accounting nerd), art, soccer, toilets and family.  More importantly, I am willing to engage in conversations with you about any topic that you love discussing, especially Rotary!
 

Personally, I find very few aspects of my life to be more rewarding than problem solving.  Each of us inherently knows that nothing is perfect, including our clubs.  Therefore, the skills required to solve problems are critical in our work towards the long-term continued success of our clubs.  I look forward to problem solving with you all. 
 

When problem solving, we also learn.  I knew that I had an unsatiable life-long learning problem when I was at work one day early at my career with First Supply listening to a man talk about the amazing flushing capacity of his company’s new toilet bowl.  I scanned the room and dozens of other people were nodding their heads in agreement.  I was in my thirties at the time and can honestly state that I had never given a moment’s thought to the water swirling in a toilet.  Years later, I have grown to appreciate all things plumbing and heating.
 

Over the year’s, I have been engaged with many groups, organizations and hobbies.  Many of these activities had established milestones which provided clear goals to which one could aspire to achieve.  However, I have learned that those milestones constantly change and were rarely, if ever, the real goal.  A good example is my journey in martial arts.  When I started my martial arts training, the obvious milestone that I wanted to reach was to earn a black belt.  By the time I actually earned a black belt, I realized that the work and knowledge needed to earn a black belt was really only the beginning or the foundation, not the end game.  I can’t stress enough how important the journey is, which is how I feel about being in line for the District Governor position.  I look forward to learning, to meeting most of you and to share in leadership and friendship with District 6250 and beyond.
 

Personally, I place a great deal of value on family, service, and education.  I believe that there is plenty of time in life for both hard work and fun.  Family and friends are important.  I have a wife (Eva Marie) who is an artist, a Rotarian and in the succession line to be the president of the Rotary Club of La Crosse.  I have four boys - three are currently at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities and one attends the University of Wisconsin – Madison.  The oldest three boys participated in Rotary’s Youth Exchange program (Japan, Germany and France).  The COVID-19 pandemic unfortunately prevented my 4^th son from being able to participate, but he was the president of his high school Interact club. 
 

On a final note, I love attending soccer games.  I have tickets to the MNUFC MLS soccer team which plays up in St. Paul, MN.  Consider this an open invitation to attend a game with me and Eva Marie any time. On a similar note, during my club presidency year, I had a goal of having every Rotarian in our club over to our house for a meal, which you can interpret as “I love to cook.”  While I ended far short of my goal, I did make many new friends from the process.  I am currently trying to wrap my mind around how I could make this happen with 2,000+ District 6250 Rotarians.  In time, I might figure this out, but in the short term, when you are in La Crosse, let’s figure out how to share a meal.
 

In closing, to steal a line from our current District 6250 Governor Karen Hebert, I look forward to joining you in service.