About Jason
I was born in Seattle and grew up as the middle child in a family of six. Like many middle children, I learned early how to blend into the background. Outside the house, though, life wasn’t nearly as easy.
School was difficult. For years I was bullied—not by one or two kids, but sometimes by entire classrooms. Looking back, I think my biggest offense was simply caring too much. Kindness isn’t always rewarded when you’re young, and the few people who chose to stand beside me often found themselves becoming targets as well.
As painful as those years were, they taught me one of the first lessons that has stayed with me throughout life: it’s better to have a handful of genuine friends than a crowd of acquaintances. Loyalty has always mattered more to me than popularity.
High school became the fresh start I desperately needed. I had grown, both physically and emotionally, and for the first time I wasn’t surrounded by people who had already decided who I was supposed to be. Football gave me confidence, discipline, and a sense of belonging. More importantly, it taught me that our past doesn’t have to dictate our future.
I graduated in 1990, proudly finishing in the top 15 of my class… although there were only 30 of us, so I like to say I graduated in the top half. Like many people, I spent the next several years figuring out where life would take me. I waited tables, stocked grocery shelves, managed a video store, managed a camera store, and eventually became a portrait photographer. Every job taught me something different, but they all had one thing in common: they were really about people.
While working at Safeway, I met the woman who would change my life forever, Melanee.
We married in October 1994 and were blessed with two incredible sons, Brendan and Tristan. When our youngest was born, we traded Seattle for Eugene, Oregon, a move that required me to surrender my loyalty to the Huskies and somehow learn to survive in Ducks country.
Not long after the move, I began what became a twenty-year career at Symantec. When that chapter ended, it opened the door to another opportunity. I returned to school, earned a business degree during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, and eventually found my way into government contracting, where I now have the privilege of helping small businesses navigate the often confusing world of public procurement.
Through every chapter of my life, one passion has remained constant: photography. For more than thirty years I’ve been behind a camera, capturing portraits, sporting events, equestrian competitions, landscapes, and the countless moments that disappear almost as quickly as they happen. Photography has taught me to slow down, pay attention, and appreciate moments that most people never realize existed.
If any of what I say here helps, please leave a comment or share with a friend who may need to hear what I have to say.
Thanks for stopping by.
