Figure It Out and Get It Done

When I joined the military, I was living in a garage on Cooley Avenue during the "Great Recession" in 2008. The Army was a way out — and a way up for me.

I've spent my entire military career in U.S. Army Special Forces, the Green Berets, where we're often sent into difficult situations with incomplete information and one expectation: figure it out.

That experience gave me a mindset I still carry today. Assess the problem, build the right team, make a decision, and get to work.

Some of these photos are from deployments overseas, others are with my family, including my two sons who chose to serve as well.

East Palo Alto has complex problems too. Housing, jobs, public safety, and economic opportunity won't be solved by slogans. They take people willing to work through tough problems and find a way forward.

That's the mentality I bring with me: figure it out and get it done.