My name is Sean Kerchner. I was born in North Carolina on July 20, 1983 to a wonderful Mother Patricia Gardner who has supported me in everything I have done my entire life. My father Tom Kerchner wasn't in my life as much as I wanted and that has had a lot of impact on my life. Thankfully, Mark Gardner stepped in and took that place in my life and has to be the best Dad any son could ask for. I have three sisters in total. Brandy, my only older sibling and younger sisters Jamie and Paige have been great sisters. We had a lot of fun growing up and building forts, sledding, trips to Disney and quality time spent in Florida and Georgia. Regrettably I missed a ton of my sisters' early adulthood while I was in the Military. I left for the Navy when Brandy had just started college and Jamie and Paige had just entered high school. I wish I had been around more during that time because I missed a lot of graduations and big brother time.
In my early years growing up in Florida I had some awesome times. Hot sunny summers, dirt bike rides with my grandfather (Pop-o) and the white sandy beaches of Clearwater Beach. Awesome memories of sitting around campfires cooking oysters plucked from the water just hours before and cold watermelon slices on the dock at the Swanee River house. I got to spend a lot of summers with my Oma and Opa in Boston and those trips were always filled with fun. My first Red Sox game (they beat the Yankees), fresh lobsters and who could forget Stars Nachos. I knew I was in love with food at a young age and always wanted to know what made things so awesome! I enjoyed watching my Mother and Grandmothers cook but never really spent that much time learning to cook. I remember getting some lessons from Mom and Mimi here and there. I can still taste my Mom's stuffed green peppers and can still feel the zing of a tomato fresh from Mimi's and Pop-o's garden. I had a great childhood, even when I was being a pain in the ass for my parents.
We moved to Maryland when I was still in Elementary School and I had thought we moved to a different country when we showed up and found all the snow. The house in Colesville, MD has a lot of good memories and a couple funny "Sean Fail" moments. My favorite still being mis-setting an alarm to sneak out and leaving before it went off just to come home to pots and pans in the window and getting myself busted. Epic Fail Sean! I graduated high school without any bells and whistles and decided to join the Navy instead of failing out of college. It would have happened.
The Navy was awesome and I miss the open ocean, the sea at night, the bombs, the ships, my shipmates, the planes and even some of the Bull Shit! Getting hurt sucked, being gone all the time sucked, but traveling was pretty cool. On my first couple trips home I fell in love with a friend from high school. She has been by my side for 12 years and I can’t imagine my life without my wife Erica Kerchner.
Erica and I got married while I was still in the Navy and she is my favorite person on earth. Together we can sit and make fun of the people on the news for being stupid and enjoy the simple things in life. We have had some amazing times together, our first apartment, motorcycle rides at the beach, Redskins games, our first home and being snowed into the bar with some great people for 24 hours. It has been a wild ride and I can’t wait to see what the years have to bring.
After the Navy, I spent some time working with Richard Jordan my Father In-law installing Security Systems and Cameras and working for a business he built from the ground up. Richard was an awesome Father In-law. We spent many nights watching crappy movies and taking trips to Outback for filets and Mai Tai cocktails. We got some under the hood time on a couple cars and trucks and I picked up a few awesome skills like locksmithing and picking locks. After Richard died, I had to deal with my first major loss of a family member. It took a while to bounce back from that loss. Life changing for sure.
I found myself a few years later working for a living history museum as the Director of Facilities and Grounds. I enjoyed it at first and did well in my two years there, but I knew I wasn't happy with what I was doing. Then my Pop-o died. It broke me.... it broke me hard. This is when I realized it was time for a change. It was not a good time for me. I started thinking about all the things in life I passed up on trying to take the easy way most of my life. I wasn't having any fun and found myself working more than I was spending at home with my new daughter. Charlotte, who was born on March 17, 2010 and I have been wrapped around her little finger ever since. I knew when she was about one that I had to find something I loved to do. I knew it was time to cook. When ever I had a shitty day, I cooked! I want the world for her and I want to teach her to reach for her dreams.
That brings us to me moving to Portland after quitting my job, and trying to chase down my dream of opening my own bar. I knew I loved food and figured now was the time to really give it a shot. I figured a degree in Culinary Management was the right way to go while I break into the industry. I started "shagging" pies for a pizza place while I built some skills. Got a sweet job working in a local brewery doing dishes and snuck my way on to the line within two weeks of working there. I had a hell of a baptism by fire into a busy kitchen. I did pretty well and found myself keeping up in no time. After a short time there I interviewed for a position in one of the busiest kitchens in Portland (Jake's Famous Crawfish). I found myself prepping mass meals and fish and shellfish by the hundreds of pounds. This is a rocking kitchen, hard work and nothing else! All these jobs have been awesome to me and I am learning the industry quickly all while going to culinary school full time. So, now we are current and I have rambled long enough about myself for you to get the general picture of me.
Here's to chasing the first pint, Bottoms Up!
