Biography

I am the oldest of five children, was raised in Hudson, MA, and grew up on a small eight acre farm where I learned the value of hard work starting at a very young age.

My early dream was to be a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox. While not working in the garden, tending to the farm animals, or doing other chores, I played baseball. We didn’t have a ball field, so my father encouraged me to convert one of our hay fields into a baseball field, which I did with the help of my brother and some friends. Unfortunately, I was one of those baseball kids who learned how to throw a curve ball too young, and ended up with an inflamed tendon in my elbow, also known as “tennis elbow”, and this ended a short baseball dream. I often wondered how things might have turned out if I was properly coached.

I graduated from Hudson High School in 1967, and joined the Army. My training was in Helicopter maintenance. Following this training, I was deployed to Vietnam for one year, where I was a Crew Chief on a UH-1 Huey Helicopter, and served as door gunner where I logged over 1,000 flight hours. After my tour of duty, I then served as an instructor on Helicopter maintenance until my honorable discharge in 1970 as an E-5.

I have a son and two wonderful grandchildren. I moved into the Attleboro area in 1973.

I graduated from Wentworth Institute in 1972, and then graduated from Northeastern University with a Bachelor Degree in Electronic Engineering in 1976. I have worked for a number of Massachusetts companies in a variety of positions of increased responsibility. I have also taken several Management, Business, Finance, and Statistics courses as my career moved more in the management direction. I  worked for Raytheon Company for 20 years, holding many Quality Management responsibilities, and retired from Raytheon in 2008.

I have always cared deeply about my community, and first entered the political arena in 1990. In 1993, I was first elected as an Attleboro At Large City Councilor, and have a solid record of accomplishments with my 13 years of City Council service. I am well known for my advocacy of the taxpayers by keeping costs and fees reasonable. I have successfully sponsored several water, sewer, and trash fee reductions, as well as cuts in wasteful spending. I have always been a solid supporter of education, Public Safety, and Recreation. I am also not afraid to tackle tough issues to benefit the citizens of Attleboro.

In 2008, I was elected as State Representative, where I currently serve on the Transportation, Election Laws, and Professional Licensure Committees. In my first term, I have, on a number of occasions, demonstrated my independence on key votes. One of my proudest moments was working with Governor Patrick, Lt Governor Murray, Speaker Robert DeLeo, city officials and the Registrar of Motor Vehicles to locate an express registry in downtown Attleboro after the North Attleboro Registry was closed. During the first six months of operations, it has served over 14,000 customers.