Tony has spent his entire life in Independence, going to Blackburn Elementary and eventually graduating from Truman High School in 2009. In high school Tony was a varsity letterman in wrestling and track, played baritone and trombone in band, attended the Math and Physics Institute, and participated in math competitions, ranking 15th in the Missouri Math League and being one of fewer than 100 students in Missouri to be selected to take the American Invitational Math Examination.

Tony took his love of math to Washington University in St. Louis where he graduated in 3 years with a major in Physics. He then returned home to Independence where he earned a Master’s in Computer Science from UMKC and began a 10-year career as a software engineer, with his very first programming job being an internship in the city of Independence’s IT department. Within months of getting his first job as an adult Tony bought his house near the Square in the 1st district where he continues to live today.

During his career as a software engineer Tony lived frugally and saved carefully, allowing him to take a couple of sabbaticals from work to see the world. The first one was a trip to China where he learned how to speak Chinese. The second was a trip to Zwolle in the Netherlands, a city very similar to Independence in terms of population and average income, a trip he made to see how similar cities across the world do things that we could potentially bring here as well. When he returned, he decided to take a more active role in the community when he joined Independence’s Sustainability Commission and Board of Adjustment, both of which he still serves on today, and also the Independence Youth Court board.

He first ran for city council in 2024. Despite being a political newcomer, running his campaign himself, he managed to make it close against a decades-long incumbent with powerful backers by simply going out and talking to voters and listening to what they had to say. In the run up to this campaign he realized in order to represented everyone in the 1st district he needed to be able to represent the significant number of residents who don’t speak English well, so he did the hard work to learn how to speak Spanish to be able to hear their concerns.

After a decade of corporate life Tony decided to take another step to live a life dedicated to helping others in Independence by giving up his career as a software engineer and switch to being a math teacher. He is currently entering his 3rd year teaching math at Nowlin Middle School, teaching the very students who live in his community. He is currently working on a Master’s of Art in Teaching from the University of Central Missouri, with an anticipated graduation in 2027.