Jim was born and raised in Bakersfield, California. After high school he continued his education earning a bachelor’s degree in business economics with a minor in math while attending the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Out of college, Jim was an executive with the Boy Scouts of America in the Bay Area. He returned to his hometown in 1969, and began his career in the steel industry. He spent the next 13 years honing his expertise in an industry he often views as “an under-the-radar type business”.
In 1983, Jim and his wife Lee Anne purchased Valley Iron and moved to Fresno. Over the next 30 plus years Jim and Lee Anne worked together with family members and employees to create the full-fledged steel distributorship that Valley Iron has become today.
Jim is active in the Fresno community, currently serving on the executive committee for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central California. He is a past-president of the State Center Community College District Foundation and supports Hinds Hospice, Terry’s House and a host of nonprofits that benefit the Valley’s youth.
Current role