Intentional use of technology has the power to enhance the human condition. My intention is to connect with smart, creative, driven people who are positively transforming the world. I absorb information rapidly, delve into root cause, relentlessly optimize, and communicate clearly and proactively. I am a lover of learning, integrity, action, and a good laugh. I started coding in the mid 90's, learned Linux in 2000, and have been architecting web-based solutions for a wide range of clients across multiple industries ever since. I have deep DevOps experience ranging from release engineering and CI/CD to automated, inside-out testing. I am focused on Cloud-native tech like Docker and Kubernetes, and I am a Certified Kubernetes Application Developer. I am the Tech Lead on my SRE team, and mentor and teach strong software development practices on a daily basis.I am also a seasoned fire dancer & performance artist. In 2006 I founded a professional fire troupe called Pyrotechniq with 4 friends and built it into a 10 member ensemble that designs and performs choreographed, professional fire spectacles for small, medium, large, nonprofit, and municipal organizations throughout the midwestern United States and internationally. I "retired" from professional fire performance in 2015 to focus on other initiatives, but the fire never really goes out.I am the Founder and President of the CHIditarod Foundation, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization based in Chicago dedicated to combating food scarcity and insecurity through grants, fundraising, and creative participatory events like our flagship event -- The CHIditarod — which I founded in 2006. CHIditarod is a 1,000 person costumed shopping cart race and mobile food drive dedicated to stomping out hunger in Chicago via creativity, organized chaos, and charity. Since inception the CHIditarod has collected more than 200,000 pounds of food and more than $300,000 in grants.I also co-founded and am President Emeritus of the Bold Urban Renaissance Network (B.U.R.N.) 501(c)(3) non-profit.