Speakers

STEVE JONES(Picture)

Steve Jones is a native of Washington. Born in Vancouver, he has lived most of his adult life in Woodland and Tacoma Washington.  Completing his undergraduate degree in Phoenix, Arizona in Pastoral Care and Counseling, he also earned a minor in aviation. Graduate work included a Masters's in Divinity from Denver Seminary, Denver, Colorado.

Steve is married to Dena Jones and together they have four daughters.  46 years later, it has been nothing but marital bliss.  Just don’t ask Dena…

Steve’s occupational background includes various flying jobs like crop-dusting, cargo operations, corporate, and flight instruction.  Steve left the aviation community and has spent the last 45 years as a commercial insurance broker.

After working briefly for a logistical support company in West Africa in the mid-nineties during a brutal civil war in Liberia, Steve and his brother Nathan started a school for child soldiers. After seeing the heartbreak of children as young as 6 years old carrying automatic weapons and killing indiscriminately. they formed a non-profit and began coaxing kids out of the war and into school. Initially, they were trading Kalashnikovs for color crayons. The school continues to the present.

Most recently Steve and 3 others started the Tacoma Business Council of which he is the President.  This effort was to urge city leaders to work quickly and efficiently to curb both petty and violent crime in Tacoma.

He is here today to speak about those efforts.

BRETT JOHNSON

Brett Johnson is a Tacoma native-born at St. Joseph Hospital.  Brett’s parents both come from families of 6 children and his grandparents on both sides are long-time Tacoma residents.  Brett spent his elementary years living in Tacoma’s eastside where he attended Rogers Elementary and participated in Eastside Boys & Girls football and basketball.  After completing 5th grade Brett’s family relocated to the north end where he attended St. Patrick Middle School and graduated from Stadium High School.

After nearly 10 years of living away from the Northwest Brett realized that Tacoma was in fact his “city of Destiny” and he moved home after completing his contract in Afghanistan where he has been a local business owner since 2010. In addition to being a business owner Brett has been involved as a Sound Transit Citizen Oversight Panel member, and currently works with the Tacoma Business council and the President of Tacoma safe.