WHY ENGINEERING?
As a kid I loved to build with LEGOS or anything else I could find. I would spend hours making planes, buildings, and whatever else a kid’s imagination could think of. Now the LEGO pieces are bigger. I consider myself to be very lucky to be an engineer and continue to design with building blocks. At first, structural engineering wasn’t at the top of the list. My heart was set on Aeronautical Engineering designing airplanes and spacecraft. But before I started at Purdue, I realized there aren’t too many job openings for aeronautical engineers. I’ve never regretted my choice.
HAVE YOU WON ANY AWARDS?
It seems structural engineering goes unnoticed with little recognition. I believe a good structural design should go unnoticed. That demonstrates you were capable of allowing the architect‘s concepts work. With that said, the best award is repeat clients and recommendations. That’s proof you are doing a good job and keeping the client’s priorities in mind. In addition, I have been very lucky to have designed homes for the Parade of Homes and to be a part of the celebration.
WHERE DID YOU GO TO COLLEGE?
Boiler up! OK, well I’m not a big fan of the “Boiler up” cheer, but it was started by football coach Joe Tiller’s wife and I have a lot of respect for the Tiller family. Unfortunately, he is no longer coaching and they have moved back to Wyoming, hence, the “Boiler up” coming from “Cowboy up”.
I loved going to Purdue. Yes, it’s in the middle of corn fields in Indiana, but a wonderful college town and a beautiful campus. Purdue is one of the top ranked engineering schools in the world. At the time I went there, I believe the Civil Engineering was ranked #2. I’m very lucky to have been accepted and to have survived! I still remember freshman orientation and the day all of the freshman engineers were required to attend a lecture and asked to dump their girlfriend that night, forget about any hobbies and learn to survive on only 4 hours of sleep every night. Well, I maintained a long distance relationship all four years, took up a new hobby (partying) and decided sleep was more important than going crazy.
HAVE WE HEARD ABOUT ANY OF THE PROJECTS THAT YOU’VE DONE?
Unless you live in cave, I’ve done work for most of the home builders in Colorado. Some of the Homebuilders that have stood out over the years are Oakwood Homes, Infinity Home Collection, Lennar, KB Homes, Beazer Homes, Meritage Homes and Capital Pacific Homes. The KB Home Martha Stuart Collection has probably received the most media. I was also the structural engineer for the Parade of Homes at Daniels Gate and Stapleton for Infinity Home Collection and Woodley Architects. That was a lot of fun being a part of the parties at the Parade of Homes.
Other than home builders, a couple projects I enjoyed was designing the post tension foundation for Big Horn Plastering located by the Broncos practice field, a three story hotel for the Yavapai Indian Tribe in Prescott, AZ and Lincoln Station at the Lincoln light rail station. However, due to the economy it sounds like Lincoln station may never break ground.
COULD YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR FAMILY?
I met my wife, Kate, on a blind date to the senior year homecoming dance. I was scared to death that night, but I must have done something right. Kate and I have been together ever since and happily married for over 9 years. We have three wonderful children, Kyle 7, Sean 5 and Elizabeth 3 in August. Elizabeth goes by Lizzie or “Baby Boss” if she is keeping the boys in line. Most evenings are spent at soccer or baseball practice/games or playing in the backyard. It’s a blast watching little kids get out there and play. My wife and I volunteer to coach the boys’ soccer teams. We loved doing it and look forward to next summer.
HOW DO YOU SPEND YOUR FREE TIME?
During the school year my wife and I volunteer for the PTO. Kate, my wife, has been the vice president for two years and now entering into her second year as president of the board. So that unofficially makes me the PTO whipping boy. I’m kidding of course, and we have a lot of fun helping with the carnival, three dances, fund raisers and everything else that goes on.
My family and I also enjoy going up to the mountains. The kids are still young and not too sure about camping. They have got in their heads that bears are all over the place. But we have lots of fun exploring new places. Otherwise, we fill our remaining time with trips to the local swimming pools and bike rides along the Highline canal.
