I always thought I wanted to be a doctor. I enrolled in pre-med and in my final year won the national Goldwater scholarship for science. This scholarship would map out the next four years of my life and set me on a career in medicine. Somehow this scholarship made me realize that's not what I wanted from life. Then, in the winter of '99, my friend gave me a video course called "Yes, You Can Draw!" It was like a light had been turned on. Once I drew one portrait, I knew I had found what I was looking for--a passion inside of me that I could share with the world. I simply love drawing portraits because each has a different story to tell. No two faces are the same--each face has its own light in it, mostly radiating from the eyes. I try to capture that light in my portraits. That's how I show the beauty of each soul. In March 2004, the Washington Historical Society discovered my pencil portrait of Sacagawea and said it was the best they could find anywhere of her, capturing her essence beautifully. I felt that was a powerful endorsement of my work. I try to put that level of authenticity into every portrait I create.