What moved you to apply for the Board?

I've served on the board since 2023 and would like to continue another term.

What is your vision for FAI? If chosen, what do you hope to accomplish during your term on the Board?

Continue to provide financial and legal oversight of the event team and leadership continuity through training.

What skills do you have that you think will be useful to the Board?

Two years experience working on the Alchemy board

What is your history of Georgia burn attendance, and what other burns have you been to?

Alchemy, To the Moon, Ignite, Transformus,  Love Burn, and others

Please tell us about your past leadership experience both at Georgia burns and at other burns.

Two years experience working on the Alchemy board. Experience with other regionals in tech and info roles.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience outside of burns.

Small business owner and entreprenur.

Starting with the sentence fragment below, please write one paragraph: If I were a hotdog...

Haha is this to make sure we don't use AI to generate answers?

What moved you to apply for the Board?

I have an extensive history in non-profit executive leadership, as well as having held many board of director positions in the past in community organizations. I have nearly a decade of experience in fiscal leadership, volunteer management and coordination, as well as recruitment.  I have recruited for, managed, and staffed my own board of directors, overseeing their daily, weekly, monthly and yearly operations.  I have recently been wanting to find a board position with an organization, and while I'm brand new to the burn community, having just discovered it and attended my first burn this past Alchemy, I feel my skills and talents can be an asset to FAI and the organization on the whole.

What is your vision for FAI? If chosen, what do you hope to accomplish during your term on the Board?

My vision is to leverage my skills to support FAI and their mission. My hope is that through my involvement and engagement, to help support, build and grow the local and regional burns, as well as supporting the arts, artists, and participants both at the burns and throughout the year.

What skills do you have that you think will be useful to the Board?

Leadership: Personnel Management, Recruitment, Retention, Training

Communication: Public Speaking, Customer Service, Community Outreach, Conflict Resolution, Direct Volunteerism

Fiscal: Fundraising through direct sales, grant writing, donor solicitation in support of organizational success

Technical: Microsoft Office Suite, DonorPerfect, Social Media Marketing and Brand Presence, Video Editing

What is your history of Georgia burn attendance, and what other burns have you been to?

This Alchemy was my first burn, so I am new to the burn community and am currently building my burn family and network. I am excited for this opportunity to be more involved, as the experience has led me to want to dive in with both feet. I understand that my burn experience being limited could be a hinderance in my consideration for this position, however I feel that my skills can and will be an asset to FAI.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience both at Georgia burns and at other burns.

As above, this would be my first leadership position in the burn community. I spent build weekend working with the placement team and put in around 26 hours of service.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience outside of burns.

• I spent 8 years as the Executive Director for the Boy Scouts of America serving two counties in Central Florida.

• I recruited, managed and provided leadership for a 32-person Board of Directors focused on youth experiences and organizational funding

• Trained and motivated over 300 volunteers, resulting in enhanced performance and yearly evaluations that exceeded organizational expectations

• Managed relationships with over 100 fiscal clients, over 3,000 families and over 400 volunteer Leaders

• Organized large-scale fundraising events, raising over $700,000 through event management and promotions

• Raised over $200,000 annually through direct product sales campaigns and community outreach efforts

• Developed and executed targeted guidance, resources, and training for leaders and volunteers

•As a volunteer myself, I served on the board as the Secretary for the Rotary Club of Apopka, as well as being a member of the Orlando and DeLand Rotary Clubs

•I am Leadership Apopka Graduate (Business Leadership Training and Certification)

•I was a member of the Apopka, East Orlando, West Volusia Chamber & Deland Area/Orange City Alliance Chamber of Commerces

•I served on the board as the Membership Coordinator for the Sertoma Foliage Club of Apopka

Starting with the sentence fragment below, please write one paragraph: If I were a hotdog...

Loaded question! Interestingly enough, a hotdog is a conglomeration of many different parts. As such, I as a person too feel I am multifaceted and that there is more to me than just what one sees on the outside. As a hotdog, I would be proud of what's inside. Hotdogs are also things that so many many people enjoy, but not everyone, and that's ok. But for those who do enjoy them, I would be happy that I could be used for the purposes of bringing joy and smiles to others. Be it at a game, backyard BBQ, a party, or any other number of occasions where my presence is welcomed and appreciated. But most of all, I know that with or without a bun, I enhance peoples' experience. It's not about me, it's about the occasion, and I'm just there to help make it even better.

What moved you to apply for the Board?

Having retired and now an empty, I seem detached from that which is necessary and vital in this world. The ten principles of Burning Man, particularly that of radical inclusion, moves me.  I am a technical man with engineering and business degrees.  If I can contribute some logistical and financial acumen to the overall goal of bringing us together in this material world, I would feel like I have contributed something worthwhile.  Thank you for your consideration.

What is your vision for FAI? If chosen, what do you hope to accomplish during your term on the Board?

To provide the operational and administrative support and know-how to facilitate the realization of this artistic, if not spiritual, vision of inclusion. A well-laid foundation with repeatable protocols facilitates the reproducibility of the event going forward.

What skills do you have that you think will be useful to the Board?

I have supported the logistics of airlines (Air Canada, Northwest and Delta), a complex endeavor requiring global coordination.  I have founded, run and sold a veterinary hospital, an enterprise so far removed from airlines that required a radical reframing of my talents to a more inclusive scenario.  Patience, good humor and inclusion has allowed me to achieve great results.  I hope that I can bring these to bear in service to Alchemy.

What is your history of Georgia burn attendance, and what other burns have you been to?

None.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience both at Georgia burns and at other burns.

None.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience outside of burns.

I have been the director of Tech Ops Supply Chain (Northwest/Delta), General Manager of Fuel (Delta) and Co-Founder/Co-Owner of East Roswell Vet Hospital.  In each case, I have used my skill set to manage a variety of responsibilities including growing a veterinary hospital, coordinating global fuel supplies for airplanes, buying in-flight food and beverages, and developing new flight attendant uniform designs.  I have a full resume available upon request.

Starting with the sentence fragment below, please write one paragraph: If I were a hotdog...

,said the bun

if I were a bun, said the mustard

if I were mustard, said the ketchup

and I, in a mouth of holies, did take them one onto me and me onto them

dissolving ""if I"" into ""us, we"" and onto Shekhinah

(*Shekhinah, ""dwelling"" or ""settling"", refers to the presence of God in the world.)

What moved you to apply for the Board?

i was already apart of the diversity committee

What is your vision for FAI? If chosen, what do you hope to accomplish during your term on the Board?

burn tv , bring people together from different backgrounds

What skills do you have that you think will be useful to the Board?

my networking skills

What is your history of Georgia burn attendance, and what other burns have you been to?

alchemy and i already have connections with board members, leaders, etc from around the world in the burn world.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience both at Georgia burns and at other burns.

i brought underground bands , dj, and preformed myself at the fundraiser

Please tell us about your past leadership experience outside of burns.

i have over 100 of artists, bands , club owners, film makers , media etc that i been helping to be apart of the burn community for sometime now

Starting with the sentence fragment below, please write one paragraph: If I were a hotdog...

if i were a hotdog , i’ll boil the water. Sweet and savory , make no scene but i’m here to make a difference in both worlds. Actions always been more than words to me. I don’t have much to say other than check my resume it’s all there.

What moved you to apply for the Board?

After 13 years of burning I feel a strong call towards stewardship of this organization. 

What is your vision for FAI? If chosen, what do you hope to accomplish during your term on the Board?

I want to make sure the burn continues to be a diverse and inviting space both for participants and their projects.  I will push for clear policies and expectations that encourage participation, lower barriers for new burners, while also being proactive with the external and logistical obstacles that event leadership will face.

What skills do you have that you think will be useful to the Board?

I am good at understanding and reconciliating multiple goals and visions, identifying points of contention and their implications, and leading discussions towards a group consensus.

What is your history of Georgia burn attendance, and what other burns have you been to?

I have been to alchemy since 2011, and have also attended To the Moon and Emergence.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience both at Georgia burns and at other burns.

Alchemy 2017 Propoganda, Alchemy 2019 Temple Lead, Alchemy 2023 Mapmaker

Please tell us about your past leadership experience outside of burns.

I work as an architect, having to reconcile the wants of multiple stakeholders with legal and practical concerns.

Starting with the sentence fragment below, please write one paragraph: If I were a hotdog...

...I would be covered with mustard and sourkraut.  An aquired, pungent taste that brings out the underlying flavor of the meat.  No sweet ketchup or relish for me, but sometimes i might envy those hotdogs from Chicago with the peppers, who make it look so easy.

What moved you to apply for the Board?

I joined the board in a nonvoting position in June 2024 and would like to continue to serve as a board member in a full, voting position.

What is your vision for FAI? If chosen, what do you hope to accomplish during your term on the Board?

I’m very interested in what types of fundraising and other funding opportunities may be available to us in order to fund more grants. In addition to how this could help us do more at Alchemy itself, it can also help us do more year around through our community days. I’m someone who thinks about the future and how what we do today impacts it often. It’s not just about what comes next year, but also the next five and ten years.

What skills do you have that you think will be useful to the Board?

I have experience as a board member with fundraising as well as writing and updating bylaws and charters, to include creating then implementing a board election process. I also have professional experience in operations management and human resources.

What is your history of Georgia burn attendance, and what other burns have you been to?

I am a new burner. Alchemy 2023 was the first burn I attended and I loved it so much that I knew immediately I wanted to be a part of the organization and contribute in whatever ways I could to helping bring future Alchemy burns to life.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience both at Georgia burns and at other burns.

I have been a nonvoting FAI board member since June 2024.

Please tell us about your past leadership experience outside of burns.

I have previous board member experience overseeing membership for a 1300 member nonprofit organization.

Starting with the sentence fragment below, please write one paragraph: If I were a hotdog...

I'd be a dirty water dog with sauerkraut and deli mustard.