Hi and welcome to my personal blog.
I'm currently the Service Coordinator with A Bridge To Independence in Erie, PA, where I help people with disabilities live independently in the community. This is an interesting departure from my prior work that focused mainly on helping people with disabilities finding employment.
When I first moved to Erie in March of 2019, I was briefly employed at Goodwill Industries of Ashtabula, Inc. before being caught up in a corporate downsizing. While I was only with that Goodwill for a few months, I also was employed with Goodwill Industries of Southwestern Michigan for over five years, where I worked as a Life Guides Employment Coordinator, Vocational Rehabilitation Specialist II and HIRE Program Manager. While with Goodwill, I assisted individuals with disabilities and criminal records and other barriers to employment with increasing their self-sufficiency through competitive employment. Prior to Goodwill, I worked for six years as an independent consultant who assisted persons with disabilities with planning and launching their own small businesses. Before that I was a Rehabilitation Counselor in a variety of settings. All of these jobs may sound different, but at their core, they're much the same: I got to help disadvantaged people to regain more autonomy.
As time goes on, I expect to broaden my content here to include more about my personal interests: running, mountain biking, kayaking, home brewing, beer and wine, writing, fishing, archery, target shooting, pool, darts, music, disc golf...it's a long list. I should have plenty to write about.
This is probably a good place to share few things about me that aren't reflected in my resume: I'm the father of two sons: John, 18, and Erik, 20. I'm currently in Erie, Pennsylvania. I'm aspiring to be a very good motorcyclist and a fairly terrible bass guitar player. I have talents, but music does not appear to be among them. Still, it's fun.
