This was the emphasis of my master’s program and why I chose to study at the Mennonite School of Nursing at Illinois State University.  I began my career with the Madison VA in March of 2021.

I was born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in the near west suburbs of Oak Park and River Forest.  I followed my grandfather’s footsteps into the Navy. He served during WW2 as a line officer at the battle of Attu in the Aleutian Islands. I am also a Navy Veteran, having enlisted and served as a hospital corpsman. My duty stations included the Naval Hospital San Diego, the USNS Mercy (TAH19), and the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, at Camp Pendleton, California. I served aboard the Mercy during the first Gulf War and was deployed to Somalia during operation restore hope with Bravo Company, 1st Recon, who then became Recon Company, 5th Marine Regiment.

As a husband and father of three boys, my family has been my past-time for many years. As my oldest sons have moved on to go to college, I am now beginning to find time reconnecting with my passion for the outdoors and adventure. In the past this included hiking, backpacking, camping, cycling, fishing and more. Hunting is next on my list.

Throughout my youth I was heavily involved in music and theater. I was influenced by my mother, a professionally trained and working opera vocalist, who performed in the Chicago area. Just before joining the Navy, I received a scholarship to attend college to study music and theater. However, heavily influenced by my father’s Ashkenazi Jewish roots, I made changes to that plan when I discovered a deeper interest in healthcare and service as a profession.