I grew up a city kid in Minneapolis until my family moved to Northern Minnesota when I was sixteen years old. From there, life became anything but conventional. Over the years I lived all across northern Minnesota - including more than one home without electricity or running water - and even spent months living in a wall tent during thirty-below-zero winters.

After finishing eighth grade, I left school and pursued a life in the outdoors that led to years of adventure, hard work, and experiences far removed from anything I could have imagined growing up in the city.

During that time, I fell in love with the world of sled dogs. What started as curiosity became a twelve-year journey of training and racing sled dogs throughout the Midwest, Canada, and Alaska. I eventually lived in Alaska — in a remote village south of Nome with a population of around 400 people, accessible only by boat or plane. Life there was rugged, isolated, and unforgettable.

At twenty-one, I decided I wanted a different future and enrolled in GED preparation classes with the goal of attending college and eventually working in the National Park Service. I scored high in nearly every subject except math, which was a major struggle for me. After a lot of work and persistence, I passed my GED and enrolled at Vermilion Community College in Ely, Minnesota, where I continued racing sled dogs while pursuing a degree in natural resources.

While math remained difficult, I excelled academically in other areas and was nominated by the college for the Minnesota Community College Student Achievement Award, ultimately finishing as runner-up statewide. Although I came within a quarter of finishing my degree, I left college to pursue another opportunity giving sled-dog rides in Oregon.

Even without finishing my degree, my internship experience at a National Park helped me secure positions with both the National Park Service and later at a State Park.

Eventually, my path shifted again — this time into the automotive industry. I started selling cars, then became fascinated by the emerging world of the internet and digital marketing. In 2005, I transitioned into dealership internet operations, eventually becoming an eCommerce Director for a dealer group before later being recruited as a Digital Strategist working on the Subaru account.

In 2011, I founded 3GEngagement, a digital marketing company that has grown into an incredible team of talented people. More than anything, I’m grateful for the people I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside and the relationships built over the years.

 Along the way, I’ve also pursued creative passions including filmmaking, writing, fly fishing, photography, and this year the completion of my memoir, The Day I Disremembered.

At the center of all of it has been a lifelong curiosity about identity, resilience, memory, and the unexpected paths life can take.