Bill comes from modest means. Bill grew up between two separate households – a single father who was a union steelworker and a mother whose family was made up of firefighters and EMTs. Neither side was a stranger to making ends meet and making do with what you had or doing without. He understands having to work two jobs to pay your bills and how hard it can be just to stay afloat sometimes.

That is why Bill was the first of my family to pursue a college education. As the only openly gay student at his conservative Lutheran high school, Bill persevered and was the first in his immediate family to graduate. Bill did not stop there — he went on to a four-year university not once, but twice: Webster University and Saint Louis University, where he studied French Language and Literature and currently studies Greek & Latin Language and Literature.

Bill has a track record of public service. He has held active and prominent roles in the St. Louis LGBTQIA+ community, from being a member of Growing American Youth and eventually its youngest-ever board member, to becoming the Archivist and Library Coordinator for Pride St. Louis. As a public library professional, Bill saw daily the effects of unjust legal and social barriers on the lives of everyday citizens, which inspired him to run for a legislative role in St. Louis, Missouri.