Born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1967 he earned the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration at the University of New Hampshire. An Air Force veteran formerly stationed at Nellis Air Force Base (1967-71), in 1974 he got an M.B.A. at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

From 1985 to present, he does volunteer work as Board member on Aid For AIDS of Nevada (AFAN). He was appointed for 3 terms to the Paradise Town Advisory Board (1991-1996), then he was elected for 3 terms (1996-2002) as a Democratic to Nevada State Assembly, the first openly gay assembly member, for District 41 (Clark).