Biography
From biochem to new media
I am a native Oregonian and was born in Clackamas, which is an ever-growing suburb of Portland. My family owns a 500-acre wholesale plant nursery in Damascus where I spent my summers. I attended school in Canby, where I lived with my mom.
In high school, I played golf, was an active member of the symphonic band and earned 12 varsity letters. Amazingly, they do give varsity letters for golf, band and academics. Upon reflection, I realized that I was an extreme nerd. None of my immediate family members had ever attended college, but I was determined to break the mold a little bit. While I am currently envious of my farming family, I knew that farming wasn't for me. My love of technology and curiosity about the world around me led me to an SAT score of 1310 and a spot in the OSU University Honors College. OSU was the only school I applied to. Knowing I would major in science, it was the clear choice.
For my first two years, I majored in biochemistry/biophysics. I wanted to be a geneticist. While the loss of my younger brother is no longer something I open with, it was something that led me to genetics. He died at the age of 4 of a genetic illness called Leigh's Necrotizing Encephalopathy or, simply, Leigh's Disease.
While at OSU, I found a better way to "learn every day." This was my ultimate goal. I wanted to learn as much as any human could. I found a place to learn and work at the OSU student newspaper, The Daily Barometer. Biochem was so very theoretical, and I appreciated the live-and-learn mentality of working for the student newspaper. I would learn a new tidbit in class and apply it the very next day to my reporting. And every day lead me to a new story and a new understanding of the world around me. Learning didn't stop after college.
Spending more time at the paper as the news editor, than on my studies as a biochem major, meant for some horrible grades. After failing organic chemistry, I officially changed my major to new media communications. It felt cheap at first, like I was cheating myself out of the hardest/best education that I could get. I quickly realized that I loved what I was doing and I was pretty good at it. That was enough for me.
I was awarded a Snowden reporting internship at The McMinnville News-Register with Managing Editor Steve Bagwell. The next year, I served as editor in chief of the Barometer. After that, a page design internship with Managing Editor Patrick Webb at The Daily Astorian. After graduation, I had the pleasure of interning at The Oregonian. First, I served a 10-week internship as a page designer. Then, I was recruited to intern as the letters editor under the direction of Mary Kitch, David Sarasohn, Bob Caldwell and The Oregonian's editorial board. It was a cub editor's dream come true.
A phone call in December 2009 led me to a two-year contract position with Hewlett Packard.
In my spare time...
I am a proud member of the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office search and rescue team. I was certified in 2005 and I currently hold the position of "reserve team leader." That means, as I am away from the Portland Metro area, I keep track of other members who have gone off to colleges and universities around the world and intend to come back to serve as members of the unit. I put in about 400 volunteer hours a year with this group.
The sheriff's office uses our team to rescue hikers who are injured or lost in the gorge, search for evidence in all kinds of criminal investigations and as "hired" help for different training scenarios - such as school shooting training for the law enforcement. For more information, click here.