I’m a first-generation hunter from Atlanta. Nobody handed me this. I taught myself the long way — one covey, one training season, one humbling at a time — and walked far enough into it to become an Orvis-Endorsed wingshooting guide. I’m also a painter and a teacher, and most of what I know about both I learned standing behind a dog.

I was brought along in the bird dog world by Black dog handlers — men like Neal Carter Jr. and Curtis Brooks Sr. — who carried a tradition far older than me. My wife Ashley and I co-founded the Minority Outdoor Alliance to keep that door open behind us. My dogs are named after rappers, songs, and pieces of my culture, because they belong out here. So do I. So do you.