Research, Experience, Patience, and Humility; I keep these in my toolbox and bring them to bear every time I’m in the garage with a car or motorcycle. These are some of the same things that every project needs - regardless if it's the daily driver or the weekend hot rod.I found out young that I’d rather design and build a porch than sit under one. Ever since, I’ve been drawing, tinkering, building and fixing, but not without making a mistake or two. When the same hand does all of the work, however, it becomes easy to trace the relationship between a problem or mistake back to its cause. Looking at how to prevent mistakes has become a passion, and for the latter part of my 30+ years in architecture (and fixing cars for that matter) finding ways to improve what we do throughout design and construction has made up a large part of my work. One of the things I’m drawn to is that when people are interested in the work they do, they tend to do it better. Perhaps not surprisingly then, I have a love of mentoring; finding and encouraging sparks of interest in younger staff with the intent of watching them grow beyond their own goals. It’s a true joy for me.