I was brought up on a farm in rural Vermont. My favorite pastimes included catching snakes and frogs by our pond which sparked my lifelong interest in wildlife at a very young age. My childhood experiences taught me to have a deep reverence and healthy respect for our native flora and fauna.
As I got older, I began to appreciate the concept of wildlife control as a farmer. Our goal was to keep predators out and our livestock safely inside – and thus were planted within me the seeds to a holistic integrated approach to wildlife damage management. Other long term hobbies included woodworking which not only familiarized me with tools and repairs, but also taught me life lessons such as “measure twice, cut once”.