More about me

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I was born in 1962. I married Tanis in 1985 and we have two adult children. We are both of European descent and have extensive extended families whom we like to spend time with whenever we can. We attend Hillside Baptist Church. 

I met Tanis at Trinity Western University in the choir and studying Music History. While my interest in music and composition has endured, Tanis takes the award for a lifelong career as a music and piano teacher.

I aspire to embody a life that attempts to repair the settler/indigenous relationship on Turtle Island (Canada). I am slowly learning, listening, and nurturing friendships. I affirm the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

I'm developing an approach called Conceptual Bridging (CB), aimed at improving understanding across diverse groups. It attempts to go beyond a human-centric view, recognizing that everything communicates, including people, animals, and even non-living things. By integrating psychology, language, and cultural insights, CB fosters empathy and context-aware communication, especially useful in bridging gaps between in-groups and out-groups, us/them mentality. You can try out "Conceptual Bridging GPT", a conversational artificial intelligence I created to help bridge people and people groups.

I have been a Director and Volunteer with Reachout to Africa (R2A) since 2005, when I met South African vulnerable children and youth. I immediately felt belonging and a deep connection with the people, the culture, and their resilience.  My role involves  fundraising and overseeing the organization's strategic direction. I am passionate about actually participating on the ground at "Hope Camps" in South Africa, helping, hands-on in our humanitarian services. My involvement reflects my dedication to bridging gaps and building stronger, more resilient communities through practical support and empowering initiatives.

Reachout2africa.org

I have been learning the language of the South African and Eswatini communities served by Reachout to Africa for a number of years. While I yearn for fluency, it's not the kind of thing one can achieve without immersion -- not at my age at least!