From the 2016 Brussels bombings to billionaires battling over a tiny Texas electric co-op, from helicopter rides over ginormous wind farms to the Ferguson, Missouri race riots, reporting has taken me on a wild ride.
Now, I'm back in my hometown, the Queen City of the Ozarks, to tackle business and economic development — a beat that sounds almost intentionally vague. That's because it’s still being defined. Behind me is a star-studded reporting team at the Hauxeda, who I'm now proud to call colleagues, including staples like Steve Pokin, David Stoeffler, Jackie Rehwald and many more.
The dip back into the Ozarks culture will be a familiar, nostalgic trip that I hope I'm ready for. Two years ago, we lost my dad to brain cancer. It was a terrible struggle with a horrible disease, and it affected our entire family in inexpressible ways. I'm certain my return to the Springfield news scramble would make him proud.
To my dad, there was no better place to be on earth than in a canoe floating along a raging Ozark river, armed with a paddle, a larger-than-life smile and our barking Labrador. My brother took the tradition to a new level by starting 37 North Expeditions, an adventure company with a vision for a deeper community connection to the outdoors, fostering a greater appreciation for nature.
While you can still catch me on the river, I'm more often found inside the city limits. I've enjoyed Springfield's downtown since my high school days, throughout its constants and changes. You can find me sipping a MudHouse Mudpuddle on a hot Saturday afternoon or catch me slinging a golf disc at Oak Grove Park. Too many nights you can find me cursing at a billiards table at Springfield staples like Archie's Lounge and Carrie's Bar. Some days you can even find me sweating on a section of the Galloway Creek Greenway. I tutor some afternoons at the Library Center. And Sundays, I frequent the Blue Room Comedy Club for its popular open-mic night, but let's keep that our little secret.
Don't let my long history in the Ozarks fool you: I have only the slightest clue the best way to go about this new gig. My managing editor, Rance Burger, told me to report business stories from the perspective of the consumer, reinforced with the non-profit's mission to be a catalyst for good in informing the community. With an aspiration as admirable as it is unique, I promise to do my best to cover the ever-expanding neighborhood we once again share in calling home.
After years studying business journalism in college under distinguished professors like Randall Smith, founder of the online publication Missouri Business Alert, and Martha Steffens, the endowed chair of the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, I knew the basics of a good business story. Later, internships at outlets like the St. Louis Business Journal and Politico-E.U. sculpted me to deliver economic news daily.
I'm lucky enough to have spent countless hours at a Bloomberg desk, under the eyes of impressive editors like Joe Carroll, Houston Bloomberg Bureau Chief and a well-respected and established news voice on everything in the energy sector, and Lynn Doan, a steadfast Bloomberg reporter-turned-editor who currently oversees the Technology Team in Europe and the U.S. East.
At this point, covering business comes second nature, possibly even transcending to the subconscious level. My nightmares are sprinkled with the ghosts of 10Q and 501(c)3 filings, those dreaded data dumps required of companies by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Corporate press releases and missed stories still haunt the back of my mind, along with the echo of harrowing laughs from competitors.
The majority of my reporting has been on multi-national oil and gas conglomerates, giant companies that were rarely personified and rather often enigmatized. While I'm eager to make the jump to a reader-first approach of telling Springfield development stories, it will certainly be a whole new world for me.
I'm certainly going to need your help. No matter who you are or what your role is in this crazy city I've parachuted back into, I want to hear from you. Give me a ring and let's grab some Sno Biz, a dozen Hurts Donuts, or, you know, we could always just split some cashew chicken.
