State Park Ranger
As a State Park Ranger, I enforced state laws, responded to emergencies, conducted search-and-rescue operations, directed critical incidents, and worked closely with law enforcement and emergency agencies. I also became a State Parks firearms instructor for the Academy.

Beyond public safety, I worked on resource projects, California Environmental Quality Act documentation, special events, volunteer programs, and non-profit partnerships. Working with volunteers taught me how much can be accomplished when people care about their community and are willing to give their time.

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Supervisor
As a supervisor, I managed employees, budgets, schedules, operations, public safety, recreation, and natural and cultural resources.
My guiding principles were simple: serve the community and keep people safe.
I also represented the Department during critical incidents, which taught me the importance of staying calm, gathering the facts, communicating clearly, and working as a team.

Sector Superintendent
As a Sector Superintendent, my responsibilities expanded to include public safety, recreation, resource protection, facilities, interpretation, staffing, and budget management.

I served as the Department's representative for the Mt. San Jacinto State Park and Wilderness Area and worked with the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. I also served on the Mountain Area Safety Taskforce and coordinated emergency responses to major incidents, including major fires.

Closer to home in the Gavilan Sector, I oversaw operations involving San Juan Bautista State Historic Park, Fremont Peak State Park, Henry W. Coe State Park, and Martial Cottle Park in coordination with Santa Clara County.
I participated in public planning hearings, worked at Incident Command Centers during major emergencies, and led a special assignment involving the transition of five parks in Sonoma County to new operating agreements. That project required coordinating facilities, finances, cultural resources, operations, security, assets, and staff training.

District Superintendent
For the last ten years of my career, I was a District Superintendent. I spent the first half in the Northern Buttes District (NBD) and the final five years at the Diablo Range District (DRD). In NBD I was responsible for sixteen state park units in nine counties in Northern California and over one hundred employees during the peak season, managing a multimillion-dollar budget. As District Superintendent for the Diablo Range District, I was responsible for twenty-one park units across nine counties and a budget of more than $10 million, including multiple specially allocated funds.

The job required leadership, accountability, fiscal management, long-term planning, and the ability to collaborate with many different partners.

Throughout my career, I worked with local governments, municipalities, tribal representatives, law enforcement and fire agencies, elected officials, non-profit organizations, community groups, allied agencies, and private landowners.
Those relationships taught me something I believe is especially important for a small community like San Juan Bautista: People don't have to agree on everything to work together.