When Brian thinks back to how he got into the economic development profession, he realizes that economic development chose him, not the other way around.

Perhaps it was a couple of weeks before high school “career day” when he was talking with his golfing buddy about who to go visit on the upcoming career-day opportunity.

"Hey, my dad is the city planner, why don’t you just go see him."

So, Brian did.  He had no idea what a city planner did, but he still remembers that day.

And then, six years later and still afflicted with the same golf bug, Brian was doing what he always was doing at 5:01 pm on a summer day:  speeding to the golf course after another failed attempt to understand the construction industry.  As he was frustrated, sitting at the red light, a public service announcement came over KLOG Radio:  Kelso City Council meeting tonight at 7 pm.  Public invited. 

Likely resulting from a continued frustration of missing every fairway the previous three nights, Brian decided to do something different.  He would go to that city council meeting, sit on the back row and try to figure out what was going on.

During the meeting Brian watched and listened as seven elevated people talked—a lot.  He noted that the four non-elevated people sitting on the sides sounded far more informed.

By then Brian had a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration but absolutely no direction for what he wanted to do with it.  He was not going to become a construction executive; that much he knew.  And he certainly was not going to make a living playing golf.

His girlfriend (now wife of almost 40 years) was going to school at Oregon State.  Willamette University had a Masters of Management program that intrigued him.  Brian enrolled, studied the operations of four mid-sized economic development organizations, had three economic development internships, and graduated with an MBA.

 

Next up:  Brian Cole in Baker City