My Life I was born in Santa Barbara, California and have lived in many different countries. We lived in Nairobi, Kenya where I can remember a lot of great experiences. My sisters and I attended an African school and frequently took trips to the wild animal parks. After Africa, we spent a year traveling through Europe then a couple years living in El Salvador. Living abroad exposed me to many different cultures, schools and people and brought me close to my sisters who are still my best friends. In high school, my family settled in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Cheyenne was a wonderful place to grow up - the kind of small town atmosphere where everyone knew and cared about everyone else. I attended San Diego State University. While living in San Diego I cared for my maternal grandmother, who suffered from Alzheimer’s. After college, I moved north to Sonoma County, California, to work at a small eldercare facility owned by my father. I eventually bought the business from him and have now owned the facility for over thirteen years. I find that the elderly have so many life experiences, love and joy to offer. In the beginning working and taking care of the elderly seemed like a way for me to give something back to the community. But I have actually been the one receiving all the gifts! I love all my elderly clients, and never forget to treat them as I would a member of my own family. A Big Challenge In the summer of 2003 I decided to take on one of my greatest challenges, my weight. I made the decision to have gastric bypass surgery and in one year I lost over 250 pounds. Although I have always been healthy, I now feel great and have more energy than I know what to do with! Since loosing the weight I will confess to feeling a little more confident, but I think that I am basically the same guy as I always was. Although it is great to be able to buy clothes at any store I want, the important lesson I learned from my experience is that no matter how you look on the outside, you will always be the same inside. And your inner beauty shines through, fat or thin!