The Longest Conversation

When founding Aspire Urgent Care and Family Medicine in 2009, I was excited to stretch my entrepreneurial muscles but didn’t see myself lasting more than 5 years in my role as an urgent care provider. I was an emergency medicine physician after all - snatching lives back from the jaws of death! Well, that was 16 years ago and I’m still at it. How did that happen? The answer is clear - it’s you - my unanticipated community. In those 16 years, I have pulled the curtain tens of thousands of times so that you and I could talk. Yes, you may have come to Aspire because you had a sinus infection, the flu, or a sprained ankle but we talked about marriage, parenting, purpose, loss, grief, regret, addiction, shame, forgiveness and more. I’ve watched your kids grow up and I’ve seen you (and I) get old-ish. I’ve laughed with you, I’ve cried with you. In turn, you have inspired, challenged, and encouraged me. This has been a 16 year conversation that I have been so glad for.

While caring for you in this way has been a profound privilege, the time for me to pull that curtain one last time grows near. As it does, I find myself not at an end, but at a turning point. My heart’s work must continue, only now it changes shape.

With my brother, I’ve founded Fat Koi - a new chapter born from the belief that freedom through movement, resilience through adventure, and purpose through community can restore what life wears thin. While Fat Koi, at its core, is an outdoor brand - gear designed with intention, shaped by lived experience, and tested by the kind of days that leave a mark - it's also a conversation. It’s an open door welcoming you to a space where shared story, struggle, and strength meet. This next chapter together begins not just with a product, but with a mindset: one of curiosity, courage, and motion. The gear is just the beginning - where you choose to take it is the real journey.

So, as I step out from behind the curtain, I would be honored if you would join me and Fat Koi on this journey of exploration through writing, conversation and adventure.

Join me here

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