About Me

In 1992, I moved to Berkeley for graduate school. Just a few months later was my first trip to Lake Tahoe. While I had previously taken several trips to Yosemite and other alpine locations in California, the combination of natural beauty, year-round outdoor activities, environmental protection, and close-knit community in the Tahoe area is unmatched anywhere. For decades our family has been enjoying summer and winter time in the Basin. Three years ago, we were fortunate to move to Tahoma full time, and are delighted to call this area our home.

After the home of some close friends in Sonoma tragically burned in 2020, I worked to learn about wildfire risk mitigation. There are a number of small things that homeowners can do to reduce the risk of wildfire spread and home damage. I took this philosophy to our Tahoma neighborhood and led the creation of a new Firewise community, which now numbers over 100 homes. Together have reduced wildfire risk, lowered insurance premiums significantly, and I got to meet more people!

This experience showed me how small actions can sometimes have a big impact on the local level - which is all too rare nowadays. And my optimism from this Firewise experience is the reason that I believe I can make a positive contribution to the operations and spending at the TCPUD.

Professionally, I have worked in the biopharma industry for the last 30 years, for companies working to translate interesting science into new drugs to treat various cancers, neurodegenerative diseases, and different genetic conditions. Since 2000 I have worked on the business and finance side of the biopharma world. Focusing on complex, expensive and risky clinical trials for development-stage companies has given me a focus on what is most impactful, as well as best business practices that are applicable regardless of what type of organization is making the decisions. For example, when awarding 8-figure contracts, competitive bidding is crucial. Contractor and supplier incentives should be aligned with the organization paying the bills. And transparency in decision-making builds trust and credibility. Transparency is only a problem if you are not doing something right.