ABOUT ME
I grew up in Leamington, Ontario - the Tomato Capital of Canada. A farming town where everyone knows your name (and your business). I wouldn't trade it for anything.
I got a business degree from the University of Guelph and moved to Toronto to build something great. Over the next 25 years, I built three companies. My first was a neighbourhood pub near George Brown College - a place where locals could meet, connect, and leave their troubles at the door.
When I sold it, I spent 10+ years helping over 2,500 executive leaders build high-performing companies where every employee’s voice actually mattered. My newest company does the same thing using technology: bringing people back to having real conversations with each other.
I didn’t do it on purpose but, looking back, all three businesses have one thing in common:
I build spaces where people are seen, heard, and know they matter.
Why Port Hope
In 2016, my partner and I visited for a weekend. We never really left.
There's something about Port Hope - our heritage, the Ganaraska River, the way people actually know and genuinely care about their neighbours - that doesn't exist just anywhere. We chose Port Hope deliberately. That choice feels more right every day.
Getting Involved
I wanted to serve our community so, in 2018, I ran for Council. I didn't win. But I met hundreds of people and was invited to get involved in ways I never expected.
Over the next few years, I sat on the board of Cornerstone Family Violence Prevention Centre, chaired the Waterfront and Riverwalk Working Group, co-founded the Port Hope Education Network, and served as the original Chair of the Board for Cultivate Festival.
In those years, my love for Port Hope deepened. But I also discovered a Port Hope that many people don't see - residents struggling with domestic violence, homelessness, loneliness, barriers to getting around, genuine fears about the environment, and a municipal system that’s hard to understand or access.
That's when I knew I had to run again.
The 2022 Election
I ran for Council on a simple belief: Port Hope needed to evolve, not change. My slogan was "Look Ahead. Think Different." That message won me a seat. I got to work.
Lessons Learned
Before I was elected, I'd sit around the kitchen table saying, "I don't get why Council just doesn’t (insert brilliant idea here)."
After being elected, I learned that our system of government is made up of rule books -- municipal, county, provincial, and federal. That's when it hit me: "Oh. That's why Council just doesn’t (insert brilliant idea here)."
There's a steep learning curve to municipal government. Council designs the system. Staff operates it. Residents live in it. When the system doesn't work for someone, the instinct is to find a way around it. But that rarely works. The real job of Council is to change the system so it works better, faster, and for more people. That takes time, effort, and a majority vote. And it doesn't always happen on the first try.
I'm proud of the changes I led and influenced this term - ones that make Port Hope more affordable, give residents more flexibility, and open the lines of communication so more people have more say.
I also learned something about the job of mayor. Council isn't a political party. It's seven independents working for residents, doing the best they can with what they have. The mayor's job isn't to “whip” councillors into a unanimous vote. It's to collaborate, encourage different perspectives, listen intently, and advocate for what's right - even when it isn't easy or popular.
That takes someone willing to ask, listen, consider, compromise, and be okay when their idea isn't the best one in the room. Someone who's actually in the community - shopping, dining, at the shows, and at the festivals - sharing lived experiences with residents, not just giving speeches.
What’s Important
We have one inconvenient truth to face and three pivotal decisions to make in the next four years.
The Inconvenient Truth:
Our infrastructure - roads, pipes, water tower, dams, bridges, fire station - are old and in need of replacement. The bill is more than $100 million. Raising taxes to cover the size of that bill is unimaginable. We need to grow our tax base by attracting industry that brings real, lasting benefits to residents.
The Three Pivotal Decisions:
Our nuclear future, the final chapter of the PHAI cleanup, and updating our Official Plan (the blueprint for growth in Port Hope).
Get these right, and Port Hope will thrive for generations. Get them wrong, and we spend those same generations struggling to fix it.
I've spent my life building spaces where people are seen, heard, and know they matter. Port Hope is the space that matters most to me.
The next four years will set our course for generations. I'm running for mayor to make sure we get them right.