My experiences and interests give me a unique understanding of…

• Careers: Most of my working life has been in business leadership. What I enjoyed most about the roles I held was the ability to coach -  to listen, understand others’ motivations, and inspire (rather than direct) change. Meeting business goals was less fulfilling to me than seeing others think differently about themselves and/or a problem. 

• Relationships: My wife and I separated after 27 years when our daughters were grown and in college, and it was clear that being a constant source of stability for someone else had taken a toll on my own mental health. The process of going through the divorce was painful and helped me realize what a shell of a man I had become, lost somewhere in the shadow of my wife, and falling short of who I think my father hoped I’d be. 

• Men's mental health: I became aware of so many other men who struggle with mental health and the unique barriers they can face in pursuing help. I witnessed in my own life how helpful support, medication, and therapy were to endure and thrive during tough times. This was the catalyst for changing careers into therapy.

Where I came from…

• I grew up in Western Canada in a house that valued hard work and restraint.

• As I reflect back on my upbringing, I realize that while I grew up in a privileged home, it was also one that was not comfortable with instability nor warm expressions of emotion.

• I was a successful high school and college athlete. My younger identity was shaped by the values modeled by my parents: achievement, restraint, and control.

• In my early twenties, I married a Mexican-American woman and supported her and our young daughters while she obtained her degrees in women’s studies and political science. My wife opened my eyes to the discrimination and injustices of those experienced by others, whether on account of their race, gender, sexual orientation, or abilities.