A Return to Story, Connection, and Creative Roots

After a long pause, I’m bringing this blog back to life — not just as a digital journal, but as a creative hub and connection point for those who care about people, place, and purpose.

My name is Zachary, and I wear a few hats: creative strategist, community-minded thinker, and lifelong learner. I’m also a husband, a parent, a Lewis County local, and someone who enjoys artistic projects and creating stories.

My professional path has taken me through social work, health and public safety, small business development, and community-based operations — but at the center of it all is one driving force: storytelling that connects.

This blog is where the personal meets the professional. 

I’m currently working on two books — A House Divided (fiction) and Portage Creek (nonfiction) — both of which explore themes of identity, belonging, resilience, and the legacies that shape us. Reviving this space is part of rekindling my creative spark.

It’s also a space to return to what I love outside of work:

• Hiking in the woods and mountains that shaped me

• Rediscovering photography through a more intentional lens

• Reflecting on life between Lewis County and Alaska

• Digging deeper into genealogy and community stories

• Building bridges — across generations, professions, and geographies

Whether you're here out of curiosity, shared interests, or the potential for collaboration, I'm glad you’ve found your way. This space offers a window into how I think, what I value, and the work I care most about — both in the field and at the creative desk.

This blog will be equal parts reflection, portfolio, resource, and invitation — to connect, to share, and to grow together. I hope to encourage others who might be re-finding their voice, their creative energy, or their next chapter.

Thanks for being here. Let’s build something meaningful — and let’s tell better stories, together.

The Picture That Started It All - Boulevard Park Bellingham

Here is the very first digital picture I ever took. Actually it's number eight but I'm not counting the pictures I took of my feet or the lens cap before actually reading the user's manual.

The day this picture was taken, I went for a walk through Fairhaven and ended up at one of my favorite places in Bellingham: Boulevard Park. Along the way I just couldn't decide what picture to shoot but when I got to the park and saw this solitary purple flower stand out against the bay I just had to have it...on my memory card that is.

I don't know what kind of plant it is...perhaps a chickory...but whatever the image is of, it will always be my very first intentional digital photo.

Looking back over the last 5 years my wife and I, with the help of two digital cameras and three laptops, have managed to capture and store over 10,000 photos. And out of those I probably have 1,000 quality looking shots. And out of those I probably have 50 amazing once in a lifetime shots that made buying the camera worth it. Not to mention all the fun family snapshots of my family, especially my niece and nephew.

Who knows how many miles we have logged getting out and taking pictures of our life around us or how many more miles are ahead but if I have just one piece of advise to new photographers it isn't which camera to buy or how to compose the perfect picture...my words of advise are: just shoot!