About Zack

I am life-long resident of Waseca with deep family roots in the community.  Growing up as the middle of three siblings, both of my parents worked hard at Brown Printing to support our family make ends meet. I was no stranger to second-hand clothes, we had a large garden in the backyard to help reduce our grocery bills, and our big family vacation that we looked forward to each year was a camping trip at White Water State Park.

On those camping and fishing trips, I developed a deep respect for the waterways and forests in our state from a young age, making sure to leave things as we found them (or better). It's one of the reasons that protecting our environment is so important to me, because it's there for everyone to enjoy and it doesn't cost a dime to go for a walk in the woods.

A couple years after high school, I started work at Itron in Waseca, as an entry-level assembly employee. I spent the next 23 years with the company, and through hard work and continuing education, advanced to a production supervisor position. I even took advantage of the company's education assistance program to get a technology degree from South Central College. Unfortunately, Itron moved its Waseca factory out of state at the end of 2024, and a lot of good people that worked there, including myself and my wife, had to find new jobs. I was lucky enough to find a new supervisor position in Owatonna soon after.

I've been married to my wife for more than 20 years and have a son who is in college now. I know that struggles that working families face from experience, like trying to find a home and the costs of raising a child. We still make good use of our Minnesota State Park Annual Pass each year, just like my family did when I was a kid growing up and we have a checklist poster keeping track of which parks we have visited.

As someone who is constantly learning and trying to improve myself, I've developed a wide range of experiences, from mechanical and art skills to advancing my people skills in conflict resolution and leading a team to achieve consensus goals.

I've met a wide variety of people in my career and personal lives and I 've learned that, although we're all individuals with different beliefs and goals, when you get down to it, most of us are looking for the same things in life.

Wanting to be treated with kindness, understanding, and respect.

Wanting a job that earns a decent wage for a days work. 

Wanting time to enjoy life with our family and friends.

Wanting clean waterways and woodlands in our state for camping, hiking, fishing and hunting.

Wanting a community that supports each other and looks after our most vulnerable members.

Wanting a government that provides needed services to our community, but also gives us the freedom to live our lives as we see fit.

These are the things that I want too, and the things that I want to fight for as your representative in St Paul.