I am a 4th-generation South Dakotan, and except for a couple years of seminary, I have lived in South Dakota my whole life.

 

From my family I learned the value of hard work and integrity. While my parents, who were public school teachers, didn’t have the highest positions or make the most money in any of the small towns we lived in growing up, people respected them because they meant what they said, they put some thought behind what they said, and they always pitched in to help anyone in need. And they instilled those values in me and my two younger sisters.

 

In high school, college, seminary, and graduate school, I didn't have anything given to me, I’ve had to work for it. After graduating from Northern State University, I started seminary, where I met my wife, Chris. We were called to serve in South Dakota after graduating from Trinity Lutheran Seminary, and since then, we’ve been serving as pastors in eastern South Dakota.

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A few years into my service, I went back to school at the University of South Dakota, where I earned a PhD. in Political Science with an emphasis on Political Institutions and Public Administration. While I was earning my degree, I still was able to serve the church by preaching and leading worship in congregations when the need arose; I also spent time as a reporter and working in politics. Along the way, my wife and I moved to Sioux Falls, and I went back to parish ministry until being called to serve as Communications Director and Companion Synod Coordinator for the South Dakota Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

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​From all these experiences, I have developed a strong sense of public service and a desire to put my skills to work in elected office. I’m running because I want to make South Dakota an even better place to live, a place where all South Dakotans have a good quality of life and know the blessings of freedom, opportunity, and security.