Resource Centers

Jeff grew up on a dairy farm in Stark County, Ohio. He learned to drive a tractor and was working by age 10. After an accident, his father sold the dairy herd and turned to corn and soybeans on almost 2,000 acres. 

As a boy in a rural Ohio, Jeff learned how to entertain himself. He spent a good deal of time in the woods near his home with his dog and a BB gun. Growing up within the gravitational pull of Cleveland, he was an avid fan of the Indians and the Browns. His greatest influence on a day-to-day basis was his mother’s father, nicknamed “Nut.” He recalls Nut taking him to hunt for relics at nearby Gnadenhutten, where a Pennsylvania militia massacred 96 Christian Native Americans during the Revolutionary War.

At an early age, Jeff was intrigued by politics. He followed the Watergate story, the riots at the 1968 Democratic National Convention and trial of the Chicago Seven and says he can remember them as if they happened yesterday.

“I knew politicians usually start with the law. I knew early on that I never wanted to be a courtroom attorney. That had way too much bravado, way too much confrontation for me. My practice is all about building relationships and working effectively with clients. This is a place that understands that value of that. I work with a lot of good, straightforward people.”

He and his wife Amy have one daughter, Styrling, who currently works in Boston for a local non-profit organization.

Here’s a story to illustrate his dedication: In 2001, he bent to pick up a file in his office and his back gave out. He was flat on the floor, barely able to move. It was lunch hour, and no one was around. Instead of simply lying there waiting for help, he pulled the phone off his desk, checked his voice mail and returned a few business calls.

“I’m hardworking, focused, affable and comfortable with myself. I take a huge interest in my clients’ concerns, I’m as responsive as I humanly can be and I hope that in the end they walk away satisfied with the product.”