From Humble Beginnings

My ancestors came to the United States from Germany, Bohemia, Austria and Poland in the 1880’s, settling primarily in Barton and Ellsworth counties in central Kansas as farmers and ranchers, often making their start on the plains in sod shanties or in a dugout below the ground.  They built farms and families on the plains and endured the hardships of the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression while raising their families.  I was born in Great Bend, Kansas and would grow up calling Kansas home.  As a kid, the best time of the year for my siblings and me was wheat harvest in the summer.  At an early age, I saw the work ethic  in my parents and grandparents that would help shape me as an adult, as they worked tirelessly in the wheat fields to get wheat out of the fields, and to get fields ready to plant again in the fall.

My parents moved to the Kansas City area in the early 1970’s, settling in to a house two-doors down the street, from a girl named Lisa Thompson, who would become my wife in 1983.  Lisa and I were high-school sweethearts and got married while we were still in college.  She would graduate from UMKC as a Pharmacist, and I became the first member of my family to earn a college degree in business administration.

After graduation from college, Lisa and I moved to Leavenworth where she went to work for Harley Russell and Russell Pharmacies.  I joined Hallmark Cards in 1984 as a manufacturing section manager in the Leavenworth Plant.  This was the first of many jobs at Hallmark in a career that spanned nearly 36 years.  After my deployment to Iraq in 2007, Hallmark promoted me to Supply Chain Product Quality Director in Kansas City where I would spend the next ten years at corporate headquarters.  In late 2018, I had the opportunity to come back to the Leavenworth Plant as the production manager, to install new printing and paper converting technologies in the facility.  This was a massive investment in new technology which will benefit the plant for years to come.  I am proud to say that I worked in the Leavenworth Hallmark Plant and at Select Products for 22 years during my Hallmark career, including two times as the Plant Production Manager where I retired in 2020.

My career at Hallmark and specifically in Leavenworth, introduced me to thousands of people who either worked at Hallmark, Select Products, or those who had family members who worked in the plant.  Hallmark has provided these families with great jobs, economic stability, and contributed to the economic success of Leavenworth and Lansing for decades.  I have learned much from the people I worked with including humility, over-coming adversity, building teams, and fostering the will to improve the community we live in.

After completing a Master’s Degree in Management, I was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy Reserve in 1994.  My family has a rich history of military service, including my great-uncles who served during WWII and Korea.  Three of my uncles were also veterans of the Vietnam era.  The military service of my family members were very influential in my decision to serve the country in the United States Navy.  After I was commissioned, Lisa and I managed her career as a Pharmacist, while juggling my dual-career as a Hallmark manager and Navy Officer, while also raising our three children, Aaron, Kayla and Kyle in the Lansing community.

Our kids grew up in Lansing and all three became graduates of Lansing High School and subsequently from the University of Kansas.  Our oldest son Aaron, is a clinical laboratory scientist, and works in the Kansas City area.  Kayla received her Doctorate in Physical Therapy from KU Med, and married Major (Promotable) Brandon Lundgren, and they live near Washington, D.C. with our two granddaughters Grace and Ava.  Our youngest son Kyle, is a Captain (Promotable) in the United States Air Force.  He is a C-130 pilot and is currently stationed overseas.

My family has lived the challenges of military life in the post 9-11 world.  During the Global War on Terror, we endured my deployments to Iraq during the surge in 2007 and later to Kuwait, while also praying for our son-in-law Brandon, and son Kyle to return home safely from their deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan and Jordan.  As a family, these experiences helped deepen our love of this great country, the freedoms we inherited from our Founders, and the men and women in uniform who answer the call to serve in harm’s way.

Family, the United States Navy, and Hallmark have had a profound influence on me personally and professionally.  My parents and grandparents taught me the values of hard work, the importance of personal responsibility, and love for God and Country.  The Navy instilled in me the Core Values of: Honor, Courage and Commitment.  These are the core values I modeled as a Naval Officer from 1994 to 2022 when I retired as a Captain.  When I joined Hallmark in 1984 I learned and adopted Hallmark’s expectation that Hallmark Managers give back to the community.  We were expected to do this through financial contributions and participation in the United Way, and through volunteer efforts in community civic organizations.  In my case, I served on the Board of Directors Member at the Alliance Against Family Violence for many years between 1986 and 2014, holding the offices of Vice-Chairman and Financial Officer multiple times.  Additionally, Lisa and I are members of the St. Francis de Sales Parish in Lansing, where I also served on the Pastoral Council from 2003-2011.  The cumulative value of work experience, military service in the United States Navy, and service to the Leavenworth and Lansing communities have fostered my continuing desire to serve the citizens of the 40th district in the Kansas House of Representatives.