The road here wasn't a straight one.
The middle child of three boys, I grew up in Dallas watching my parents work hard to create possibilities they hadn't always had. My mother became the first in her family to attend college and became a teacher; my father worked nights loading trucks. Their example shaped something I've carried ever since: where we begin should never determine how far we're able to go.
At 18, I left Texas for Boston University, beginning an unexpected journey through storytelling, education, public service, government, and leadership.
My early career at Blackside taught me the power of storytelling. I became an Emmy Award-winning writer and director, but the lasting lesson was bigger: stories shape what people understand and what they believe is possible. Eventually, I became as interested in changing systems as telling their stories, leading me deeper into public education and public leadership.
Along the way, Brockton, Massachusetts, became home. I served three terms as a City Councilor At-Large, becoming the city's first person of color and first openly gay person elected to the Council. Public service reinforced something I've learned throughout my career: meaningful change requires listening, persistence, and bringing people together.
What once seemed like separate chapters now feels like one body of work. Storytelling taught me how ideas move. Education taught me how opportunity changes lives. Public service taught me about community power. Government taught me how systems work. And leadership taught me that strategy means little without execution.
My journey has also taken me around the world. I've traveled to more than 25 countries and today have homes in Los Angeles, Boston, and Cape Town, South Africa—three very different cities that continue to expand my perspective on culture, community, and possibility.
Some of the most meaningful chapters of my life weren't part of a plan. They began with curiosity, an opportunity, or a problem worth solving.
So, I'm staying curious, remaining open to what's possible, and continuing to build what's next.