About me:

Corona has been home for almost as long as I can remember.

My family moved here in 1991, when I was six years old. My dad was a manager with the Riverside Transit Agency, and because I was the youngest of the kids, tagging along with him occasionally meant finding myself at Corona City Council meetings when he had a contract or update to present. My mom later worked as a clerk at the Corona Public Library, so city events, community programs and local government were simply part of growing up.

We weren't a political family. We were a pretty typical suburban Corona family.

And we did all the Corona things.

I grew up in Scouts, swam with the Corona Swim Team, played at Corona parks and played football with the Corona Chargers -alongside a future NFL Hall of Famer, Ryan Kalil.

Eventually, Santiago became a huge part of my life. I was there in the early days, including serving as on of the football program's first ball boy with Toby Gerhart as his father coached the team. Later, I became part of the first freshman class at Santiago's current campus. Band, football, wrestling and track kept me busy throughout those years.

FROM CORONA KID TO CAREER

Growing up in South Corona looked a lot different than it does today. There were orange groves everywhere, open spaces to explore and plenty of places for a kid obsessed with anything on wheels to ride a dirtbike or BMX bike. 

A neighbor who owned a go-kart shop helped turn that obsession into a career path.

After graduating from Santiago, I attended technical school in Pennsylvania to pursue my passion for the automotive industry. When I finished, there was only one place I wanted to come back to: Corona.

My timing couldn't have been better.

I was fortunate to become part of the automotive reality television boom, working on two television productions based right here in Corona. Those opportunities accelerated my career and put me in places during my twenties that I never could have imagined as a kid.

That career eventually grew far beyond Corona. I've traveled across the country and around the world through the automotive and off-road industries, and I've had the opportunity to advocate for my industry in both Sacramento and Washington, D.C.

Today, I'm a small business owner here in Corona, still chasing the same automotive passion I had as a kid. At the same time, I work as part of the team behind one of the largest off-road motorsports events in the world.

I've been fortunate to build a career doing something I genuinely love.

And so much of it started right here.

RAISING THE NEXT GENERATION IN CORONA

Along the way, I married a local girl who, amazingly, grew up just blocks away from me even though we didn't know each other then. She went on to build her own career and operates a small law firm here in Corona.

We're now raising our son in the same community that raised us.

Having the ability to live, work, own businesses and raise a family in the same city has given us something incredibly valuable: the ability to be present.

As I've gotten older, I've also realized just how much I've become a reflection of my parents.

I've served as a Scout leader, youth sports leader and nonprofit volunteer. I've spent years attending community events, helping local organizations and  becoming increasingly engaged in what’s happening at City Hall and speaking up when decisions impact our community.

WHY I GOT INVOLVED

I began attending City Council meetings on my own around 2012 and became much more deeply involved in local government beginning in 2018.

That year, I ran for City Council for the first time.

I knew I was a long shot. But the experience reinforced something I've always appreciated about local government: you can actually see the results of getting involved.

When decisions are made in Sacramento or Washington, they can feel a million miles away.

At City Hall, you can sit in the Council Chamber. You can speak directly to the people making the decisions. You can ask questions. You can challenge an idea. And sometimes, you can watch something change because residents showed up and demanded better.

That's powerful.

Over the years, I've continued showing up ,not just during election season, but when there wasn't an election anywhere in sight.

I've spoken up about development, spending, parks, infrastructure, transparency, public safety and the quality-of-life issues affecting the people who live here.

I've also learned that good local government isn't complicated.

It starts with listening.

WHY I'M RUNNING

Corona has given me an incredible amount.

It gave me a childhood filled with parks, sports, Scouts, schools and opportunity.

It gave me a place to build a career.

It gave me a place to start a business.

And most importantly, it gave me a place to raise my family.

I love this city's history, and I believe deeply in its future.

I want the next generation of Corona kids to grow up believing their hometown is a place where they can build something, start a business, raise a family and create a life they're proud of.

Corona gave me the opportunity to thrive. Now I want to help make sure it continues providing those same opportunities for the people who call it home.

That's why I'm running for Corona City Council.