I was born in Salt Lake City and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Over 27 years ago, my wife and I returned to Utah and made Clearfield our home. My business career began in my father’s Mobil/Chevron distributorship in Albuquerque and has since spanned work with some of the nation’s leading companies. I’ve served as Production Manager for Bueno Foods—the country’s second-largest producer of frozen Mexican food—worked with Caterpillar to establish legal leasing and sales operations in northern Mexico, and joined AIG, which ultimately brought my family back to Utah.

After owning and selling a successful real estate franchise, I founded Shepherd Real Estate Group, an independent brokerage that allows me to better serve my clients and dedicate the time necessary to effectively fulfill my responsibilities as Mayor.

In both my roles—as a Mayor and a real estate broker—I have a deep understanding of the housing market and the ongoing challenges surrounding attainable housing, particularly for our military families. I firmly believe that these challenges are best addressed at the local level. To that end, I’ve partnered with Congressman Moore and his team to draft legislation targeting these issues, which has now been introduced in Congress.

Beyond my service to Clearfield, I serve on the Board of Directors for the Utah League of Cities, the Wasatch Front Regional Council, and the Utah Defense Alliance. I also serve as the Governor’s appointee to the Military Installation Development Authority (MIDA). Nationally, I’ve chaired the Military Communities Council for the National League of Cities (NLC) and currently sit on the NLC Board of Directors.

I’ve had the honor of speaking to groups across the country and have been interviewed by PBS, the Associated Press, the Wall Street Journal, and the BBC. These opportunities have helped put Utah—and Clearfield in particular—on the map, allowing leaders from around the nation to learn from our successes.