“I was born in Homestead, FL on the Homestead Air Force Base (now Homestead Air Reserve Base). My father was actually in the Navy, but they didn’t have a Navy base in Homestead, so he was stationed at the Air Force base. I ended up moving to Delaware, where I attended Skyline Middle School and John Dickinson High School. My first job was at Buffalo Wild Wings, where I started out on the grill. I eventually advanced within the company and became an employee trainer, and that’s where my career took off from when I was 18 years old. 

Wilmington is a community that sticks together, whether you’re a small business owner, musician, or just a supporter/fan in general. It’s cool to see Wilmington becoming a place where you don’t see a town full of corporate franchise businesses. We’re starting to see small businesses and young independent entrepreneurs build a brand for themselves, so it’s helped me a lot by connecting with these different people and having everyone on the same frequency trying to grow together.

For instance, I had the chance to start The Burger Joint, a pop-up stall inside DE.CO, along with 7 other stalls. I always wanted to own my own restaurant or food truck so I thought that would be a great opportunity to rent a stall and execute my vision, build a menu, and fulfill a life-long dream. I run the stall alongside my sous chef and a few other employees underneath him. 

I’m hoping the city can continue to grow and unite to give everyone a fair chance to succeed and achieve a great level of success. We share the community, so it doesn’t matter who it’s populated by — everyone should help each other.”