I began my fire service career in 1993 as a volunteer firefighter in Mendocino County. While still attending college, I was hired by CAL FIRE in 1996, and have worked in the Mendocino Unit, Butte Unit, Tehama-Glenn Unit, and Sacramento Headquarters. I have held the operational classifications of Firefighter 1, Fire Apparatus Engineer, Fire Captain, and Battalion Chief, working in various programs including Fire Stations, Helitack, Air Attack, and administration. In 2016, I was promoted to Division Chief managing the Butte Unit’s Training, Safety, and EMS Bureau, Chico Air Attack Base, Magalia Fire Center, and later North Unit operations which included overseeing the Town of Paradise cooperative fire protection agreement.
During my CAL FIRE career, I have served on several Statewide instructional cadres, working groups, and program development teams. I was lead instructor for the California Aerial Supervision Academy for six years, developing the department’s first Helitack Fire Captain Academy, and for three years I was a charter member of the Statewide Training Committee. I established Butte County Fire Explorer Post #414 and reinstituted the Butte Fire Crews at the Butte Fire Center in Magalia. I was a member of CAL FIRE’s Incident Management Team 3 from 2009 through 2013 and hold qualifications as an Air Operations Branch Director and Air Tactical Supervisor.
On March 2, 2022, I was appointed CAL FIRE Butte Unit Chief and County Fire Chief for the Butte County Fire Department, where I lead our combination fire department including both career and volunteer firefighters. CAL FIRE/Butte County is comprised of five Departments, the CAL FIRE Butte Unit, Butte County Fire Department, the cities of Biggs and Gridley Fire Departments and the Town of Paradise Fire Department.