Foundations matter to builders, whether establishing structures, processes, or people. I’m a music guy, but looking back, I’ve been as obsessed with solid foundations as any builder I know. 

I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, but spent a lot of time in my native city of Detroit. My mother was a worship leader at one of its oldest and most prestigious black churches. She and other family members lived in deep connection to the Motor City’s sumptuous musical heritage. Music has always been in my blood. I grew up playing brass instruments in concert bands and piano in garage bands and writing music for and about all of it.  

I started my collegiate music experience at Hampton University in VA, where I also enlisted in the Army Reserves. Desert Shield interrupted my studies, though, and after active Army service for that conflict, I went home to Ohio to finish a degree in Jazz Composition at Ohio State University.    

As a bachelor fresh out of college I returned to Detroit and got involved in youth ministry. It was during those years that I began to focus on the importance of helping kids establish a solid moral and philosophical foundation for life. I led a youth step team and continued to develop composition and production skills – always using the music to teach. For a few short years in Detroit, I did ministry, wrote jingles and made music for advertisers in the radio world, and courted a classmate and fellow Ohioan who would become my bride. 

In 1998, we got married and moved to Music City, Nashville, TN. My new bride and I jumped into ministry to youth and children, writing and producing musical resources to remind them of life-stabilizing principles. Some people use youth ministry as a stepping stone to the world of church work. Instead, I found myself drawn to grow the skill of helping all young people grow into their best selves. I went to Trevecca Nazarene University for a Master of Arts in Teaching and Learning and started teaching music in public schools in 2009.  

I have been creating songs, stories, skits, and musicals for students for 30 years. I wrote and produced music for QuaverEd, an educational resource provider serving over 10 million students in at least 44 countries. I am a three-time winner of the Country Music Association Foundation’s prestigious Music Teachers of Excellence Award. In 2021, I won an Emmy Award for my role in We Are Nashville, a collaborative celebration of the cultural diversity in Metro Nashville Public Schools. My two brilliant adult children are both deeply connected to the arts and have established lives founded on a foundation of rock. Of all the melodies I have produced through the years, these two make me the most proud.