How did you land in Cook County?  What journey brought you here?

It’s been a journey to get here. I first moved here from River Falls, Wisconsin in May 2020 after accepting a probation officer position. Peak COVID, the community looked a lot different than it does today. After growing up in Rochester, Minnesota, I attended the University of Wisconsin- River Falls and earned bachelor’s degrees in both sociology and criminology. After graduating, I completed an internship with Ramsey County Intensive Supervised Release – Sex Offender Unit. I then worked as an assistant probation officer and worked in the jail for a period before becoming a juvenile probation officer. After two years with Ramsey County, I worked for Dakota County as a probation officer for another two years. Somewhere around this time, I grew aware that I wanted to work in a smaller community. I loved living in River Falls, but there never seemed to be an opportunity to work a community corrections job there. 

Determined to make a move, I applied for various probation officer positions throughout the state. One of the offers I received was in Grand Marais. Initially, I was unsure about moving that far away. I was a single guy, all my family lived in southern Minnesota, and I knew no one in that community. Right around this time, I had a couple relatives pass away, and I found myself thinking “what advice would they have given me?”. With the added guidance from my father and grandmother, I figured that if I didn’t at least try it, I would always wonder ‘what if?’. Life is full of decisions and can have many twists and turns, but I can honestly say that moving to Cook County has been one of the best decisions of my life. I love my job and have a wonderful family with five children. 

My roots now run deep here. In 2025, I completed a master’s degree in Sociology from South Dakota State University, which led me to become classified as a Probation Officer III, the highest step a probation officer can achieve. I am involved in various community programs and committees, such as the Shore Substance Use Recovery Court and Restorative Justice Advisory Council. I plan to be here for a long time. 

Will you share what inspired you to be so active in the community coaching sports?  What sports did you participate in when you were in school?

I lived a very quiet, private life for the first year I lived in Cook County. Initially, I was content with that, but I started to want something more fulfilling, In 2021, I became friends with Cook County High School’s former head basketball coach, and he quickly offered me an assistant coach position in the program. He stepped down after that first season, and I was offered the head coach position. In 2023, I accepted a position to be an assistant coach with the CCHS football program, primarily working with the offensive and defensive line. Sports have always been a huge part of my life. I grew up playing basketball, football, and baseball. All three continue to be obsessions of mine. My significant other jokes about it, but sports are just about the only thing I watch on TV. I was fortunate to have been able to play college football at the University of Wisconsin- River Falls. It was the experience of a lifetime. I was blessed with an incredible coaching staff, culture, and some of my teammates are lifelong friends of mine. When I talk about another decision that shaped my future, going to school and playing football at UW- River Falls was another one that I have no regrets about.

Long story short, I want to be able to share my experience in sports with the youth in the community. I am a firm believer that participation in sports helps shape admirable characteristics like hard work, teamwork, discipline, communication, and accountability. From my first time coaching in 2021, I quickly fell in love with Cook County High School and its students. Because of my experience in college football, I want to give these students the opportunity to feel what I felt… love, respect, community, and positive culture. I have a passion to want to positively impact everyone that has ever been a part of this program. I want all my players to be extremely proud of who they are, where they come from, and the hard work that they put in. I would be naïve to not acknowledge that I do expect a lot from my players, but this goes back to the shaping of admirable characteristics. The offseason commitment, the community involvement, the excellence in the classroom, it all comes down to shaping kids into adults, ready for their next steps in life. I want everyone in the program, after they graduate, to have nothing but pride and have no regrets. I am proud of a lot that we have already achieved, and most recently, we earned Section 7A Academic All Section Team. Meaning, we had the highest cumulative GPA in the entire section. 

What is one thing you hope will be obsolete in 20 years?

This is a tough one, but in 20 years, I hope we will have more impactful treatments for cancer. Seeing family members, friends, and people I have been close to, being affected by cancer, is always jarring. It is an absolutely devastating thing to go through for individuals and their loved ones. There are too many people in this world, and even this community, being robbed of their lives. 

There is a current fundraiser going on for purchasing new portable basketball hoops for Fisherman's Picnic Hoopin' in the Harbor.  Will you tell us a bit about that and how donations can be made?

Our program runs an annual Hoopin' in the Harbor 3-on-3 basketball community tournament on the Saturday of Fisherman's Picnic. This year it falls on August 1, 2026. Hoopin' in the Harbor is an outdoor 3-on-3 basketball tournament open to anyone in the community for $15 per participant. Teams are maxed at 4 participants. In 2025, we had 52 participants. It is located in front of Sven & Ole's on Wisconsin Street at 9:30 AM. Two games will be played at a time. I am reaching out for community support to help generate funds to buy two new portable basketball hoops. Over the past four years running this event, I have personally bought or have been donated 7 different basketball hoops. Unfortunately, all of the hoops I have received have shattered during the event over the years. I am looking to buy two new Lifetime Model 90600 shatterproof hoops, which should last us several years. The total price of the two hoops is $968.98. As of today, we are at $600 raised. You can support us at https://gofund.me/c5a8ade44. Another part of this, is that because of construction to our gym this summer, we will most likely not be running our annual Alumni Game, which is a major fundraiser for our program. So please, come and support our Hoopin’ in the Harbor tournament! Donations will be available there. 

Where is your favorite go-to spot in the County where you enjoy relaxing when you have spare time?

Another tough one. There are a lot of excellent places in Cook County to visit no matter what kind of mood you are in. If you were to ask me a few years ago, I would have said anywhere up the Gunflint Trail. It’s the best spot in the state to go and disconnect for a while. Today, I think my answer would be Grand Marais Barbell. I love working out and it is an incredible gym that has everything I need.