MY STORY

“All of us are just made up of all the experiences we’ve lived and the stories we’ve heard. I’m no different.”

GROWING UP IN RURAL KENTUCKY

I grew up on a farm out in Hilltop, Fleming County, Kentucky. I was an offensive and defensive lineman for Fleming County High School, and — like most kids those days — a member of Future Farmers of America (FFA).

I went to Georgetown College right out of high school, but it turns out I was a lot better at playing football than I was at college. So I dropped out. I went to work construction with my dad as an iron worker and a rigger. But after about a year, I decided I wanted to accomplish something for myself. My family has a long history of military service, so I enlisted in the United States Marine Corps.

US MARINE

I served for four years on active duty as a US Marine. After boot camp at Parris Island, I was sent to 29 Palms to train as a radio operator. Fresh to the Fleet, I was sent to Camp Lejeune and deployed twice with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

I rose to the rank of Sergeant, but in the Fleet I learned a lot about leadership at every level. I learned that leadership means taking responsibility, and setting the example. It’s not about making excuses or blaming others. These are lessons I’ve carried with me my whole life.

In the Marine Corps, I completed two deployments with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, but after my honorable discharge, I decided to move my wife and young daughter back here to Kentucky.

POLICE OFFICER

Back in Kentucky, I was looking for work with the same ideal of service and sense of community I had found in the Marine Corps. I put in applications at the Flemingsburg Police Department and the Maysville Police Department, but I didn’t hear anything back right away and was desperate to find a job. I drove to Lexington, looking for something at a job fair. I ended up finding a job at Paul Miller Ford, selling cars for a few months, before I finally got a call back from the Maysville Police Department.

I went to work at the Maysville Police Department, starting with DOCJT training at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond. I spent five years as a patrol officer in Maysville. I was on our emergency response team, what we called our SWAT team, and I was also certified to train new police officers straight out of the Academy. But it always grated on me that I’d dropped out of college, and I wanted to set a good example for my kids.

I was always concerned that my children were going to look at me and say, “If dad can make it without having finished school, then so can I,” and that wasn’t what I wanted for them. So I managed to arrange my schedule so that I could work nights and weekends at the Maysville Police Department and while still attending classes at Morehead State University. So for three years, every day of the week I was either in uniform patrolling the streets of Maysville or at Morehead State University taking classes.

RAISING MY FAMILY IN LEXINGTON

After three years at Morehead, I graduated with honors. I attended the University of Kentucky College of Law, and my wife, Bethany, and I moved our two children here to Lexington.

I worked for a small local law firm and then a larger regional firm before establishing my own practice, and I’ve been practicing law all over the Commonwealth of Kentucky ever since. My wife is a successful business woman, and also owns her own small business. But we never forget where we came from — the feeling of living paycheck to paycheck and sometimes not even that.

I’ve tried to give back to my local community — volunteering as a mediator in Fayette District Small Claims Court, and helping out as a youth football coach at the Parks and Rec, and at Beaumont Middle School. For fun, I like to hunt and fish, camp with my family, and spend time with my Mom and Dad back in Fleming County. We are a family of folk singers, so my Dad in particular is always up for a few songs.

Now, I’m running for Congress to bring real leadership to Washington D.C. from Eastern Kentucky. We need more voices like mine, those who share the same scars as their district, who grew up poor and wanting more, and who are truly dedicated to servant-leadership — something we currently lack.