Since I was a child, I loved to look up.
Growing up in Northern Arizona, I was blessed with many nights of dark and clear skies. My mom will tell you how I would sleep on the trampoline throughout the summer months (monsoon storms excepted) and would wake her up to watch the meteor showers with me. Satellites and the ISS passing overhead are still as exciting to me today as the first time.
I dreamed of space and read science fiction. around age 8 I found Microsoft Paint and would spend hours designing satellites with small payloads of cameras and sensors and antennas and solar arrays. Sptunik must have been an inspiration, as my designs were almost always spherical, but resembled the CubeSats that have become quite prevalent in todays space economy.
I built rockets as a teenager, and more than once met with a stern talking-to by the fire department, but as any good Eagle Scout would, I always made sure there was a defensible space around my (semi) controlled explosions! Whether camping, hiking, or hunting, my gaze was as likely to be fixed upward as on any other task at hand.
I graduated as Student Body President from Bradshaw Mountain High School in Prescott Valley, Arizona in 2004, and despite multiple scholarship offers for Aerospace Engineering, spent the next few years exploring who I was as an individual and what I wanted to be. From residential home construction to retail furniture, I worked long hours to support the hobbies my friends always thought were goofy, continuing to build multi-stage model rockets while watching episodes of Star Trek.
My passion is STEM education
My first “good” telescope was a gift from my sister Lauren around 2010 – a 100mm Celestron reflector, which I immediately turned to Saturn. Luckily, it was close to opposition and every night I would set up in the cul-de-sac outside my house and look at the glorious rings. Jupiter and the Galilean moons, Mars, and the Moon were my other immediate targets. However, my thirst for knowledge extended beyond the solar system.
I quickly found the Prescott Astronomy Club, and was hooked from the first meeting. I Have since served on the club’s Board of Directors and a term as Vice-President. A member of the club invited me to his home one day, showing me his two homemade Dobsonian telescopes, with 8″ and 10″ mirrors respectively, that he had polished by hand. Using primarily his 10′, he offered me the 8″, and this is the scope is mostly use to this day.
My wife surprised me one Christmas with a pair of Celestron SkyMaster 25×100 binoculars, and I quickly found that these work especially well for younger children at educational events, allowing them to locate the object with both eyes.
My two sons think I am a total nerd, and I don’t disagree. While they have to listen to me at the dinner table talk about the week’s space news, they also have the benefit of having the coolest science fair projects every year.
The Solar Eclipse in 2017 was when I truly found my passion for STEM education. I organized an event with our club, town library, and public school system that brought together thousands of students and general public from around the county to share in this unique experience.
Whether its a classroom of 1st graders learning about the Lunar Cycle or a public Star Party, I enjoy learning about new topics and sharing that with others. One can never have too much education!
I attended Yavapai College and earned a degree in Accounting, but made sure my passion for space and science was not neglected. Astronomy and organic chemistry , while having nothing to do with accounting, were my favorite classes, and offered me additional opportunities to indulge my unsated need to always learn more about our world and universe.
In 2021, I co-founded the Northern Arizona Astronomical Consortium, otherwise known as NAZ Astro. Our mission is to bring hands on STEM education to the underserved population of Northern Arizona. To support this mission, I write articles, host a podcast, offer educational presentations, and host both public and private events to bring awareness to this cause.
I take every opportunity to check out an observatory or stop by Meteor Crater. I am thankful for a family who tolerates my incessant need to visit every Space Shuttle, science museum, or interrupt a trip to Disney World to watch a rocket launch.
When I’m not looking at the heavens, my wife and I own Manzanita Insurance and Accounting, a full service firm aiding our clients with managing and protecting their personal and small business assets, while helping to understand the complicated rules surrounding taxation.
The Backyard Astronomer 