My story begins in the frigid air of Minnesota, spending my childhood playing hockey on homemade ice rinks and cross-country skiing through the neighborhood to my friends’ houses. I was raised by a single mother with four kids, working three jobs to make ends meet. She had a work ethic like no other and a never-ending drive to ensure her kids had the same “Minnesota work ethic” as she did. My childhood taught me several things about passion, purpose and how to properly organize my baseball cards by year, team and in alphabetical order but mostly, it taught me to work harder than the rest, represent my name with pride and always believe in the Minnesota Vikings.
At age 12, my family moved to Ohio. A few years later, my mother met and married my step father and they opened a bar/restaurant called Reinbeau’s. I spent the majority of my formative years in that place cooking, cleaning and even slinging drinks when needed. An opportunity to own the beer/wine drive thru next door opened up and my parents jumped on it. Which meant that at age 18 I was running the drive thru and learning all about the business. My career goals became defined at a young age! After graduating high school, I attended Arizona State University and majored in Business & Hospitality. I served and bartended all the way through college to pay for my education and this is when I truly fell in love with the industry. This business brought me back to my childhood teachings: passion, purpose, work harder than the rest, keep my promise to represent my name with pride and always stay organized for success! Oh, and by the way, to always carry box cutters with you because you never know when you will have box tops to attend too…
In 1999, this journey brought me to the Buffalo Wild Wings doorstep. This is when I met Bobby Pancake and Steve Wheat while we worked for BWW Corporate. My partnership with the Buffalo Wild Wings brand was the turning point in my career. I worked hard and achieved success quickly taking me from an assistant manager, to a TGM, to traveling the US with training manuals in hand for the company overseeing training processes for the Buffalo Wild Wings system. My career moved to the franchise side of Buffalo Wild Wings in 2009 where I got the opportunity lead the growth path of ten wonderful teams/organization. The time that I spent with the Buffalo Wild Wings brand molded me into the business person I am today. In 2016, the circle of life presented itself with a new challenge to join the High 5 Hospitality family and, without hesitation, here we stand!
I have had so many influences along the way, and I am so grateful for all the hardships and successes. From the coaches that allowed me to stay late in the gym to work a “little longer” like coach Mike Shade, to the leaders in business that taught me lessons by “allowing me to face adversity” because they know I would be harder on myself that anyone possibly could be. They both teach you so much if you take the time to listen. But my biggest influence? My wife and 3 kids, without a doubt. They are my driving force day in and day out. They are the ones that sacrifice the most for my career and the companies I have chosen to partner with and will never be rewarded to the level in which they deserve. I am forever thankful to them and continue to work every moment of my life to ensure they are proud me. It is a blessing to be allowed to do this job every single day with the support around you. It matters!
My story really continues to be written on a daily basis. I lean on self-accountability and the need to perform each and every day to ensure I do my part to support the High 5 Hospitality team. It is such a joy to work for a company that you believe in and have the ability to influence others in a positive manner on a daily basis and selfishly allow those around you to motive you to become better for a greater purpose.
Thank You. I can’t say it enough. Thank you to those of you that have allowed me/my family to be part of the story that is growing each and every day.
What’s your Story?
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