Meet Brendan
I was born on a Sunday in May of 1983 at Northern Michigan Hospital in Petoskey. My parents had moved to the area less than a decade earlier, after my father accepted a job in Boyne City as an electrical engineer. My mother grew up in Detroit with her four sisters and was the first of her siblings born in the United States. My father was raised in East Detroit (now Eastpointe), and the two eventually met in school.
For my dad, Northern Michigan had always been a getaway—he spent his summers in Cheboygan at a small cabin near the Straits of Mackinac. When the chance came to turn that vacation destination into a permanent home, my parents took it. For me, though, Northern Michigan wasn’t an escape. It was simply home.
Growing up here meant endless opportunities to be outdoors. I played soccer and tennis in the warmer months and skied in the winter. In the summer, I sat in the back seat of a Four Winns as we exited the mouth of the Crooked River, wrapped in a beach towel to shield myself from the spray off the bow. In the fall, I would join my father for duck and grouse hunting in the U.P., stopping to check for salamanders under rocks.
As a student at Petoskey High School, I stayed busy with sports year‑round. Summers were spent working in housekeeping, cleaning the clubhouses and locker rooms at local golf courses. It wasn’t glamorous, but it came with free golf – something I wouldn’t have been able to afford otherwise. Later, I waited tables in Harbor Springs. The hours were long, but the work taught me skills I couldn’t learn in a classroom. Serving customers in a restaurant taught me how to quickly read a table and provide personalized service based on individual needs and desires. Those lessons have stayed with me, whether I’m collaborating on a project or coaching youth soccer.
In college, I studied biology, chemistry, and engineering, eventually earning a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Lawrence Technological University. After graduating, I worked in Southfield for a time. But like my father before me, when the opportunity came to return to Northern Michigan full‑time, my wife and I didn’t hesitate. Since then, our family has grown to include two sons—now 11 and 8. Having that tangible reminder of a future that extends beyond our own lives has forced a shift in my focus. I want not only to give current Michiganders a chance to build and thrive in a life here, but to be able to offer the same opportunity to all of our children’s generation and for that opportunity to extend to those who might someday want to call Michigan their home. That means taking an honest look at the unique challenges our region faces and working toward solutions that strengthen our communities in a lasting way.
Throughout my career, I’ve worked as a building restoration consultant, forensic engineer, construction project manager, estimator, and structural designer. As a licensed engineer, I’ve worked on projects across the state—from the bottom of Lake Michigan to the top of the Renaissance Center. I’ve seen what happens when public projects collide with private interests, and I’ve seen what’s possible when government and business work together for the public good. One theme has been constant in every role: the importance of looking, listening, thinking, and gathering the best data available before making a decision. That approach is a fundamental reason why I decided to run for office. Too often, I’ve watched politicians use biased language or selective data to justify a predetermined outcome rather than looking at the facts and adjusting course toward what is actually best for the people of Northern Michigan. That might work for a trial lawyer, but it doesn’t work when the goal is understanding what’s really happening and what needs to be done. Facts and reason should always lead the way.
I hope you’ll join me in committing to doing better—for all of us.