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My best and most trusted friend is Sara, my wife of over 30 years, who is also an Iowa native. We have lived in Saylor Township since 2006, where we raised our four children currently ranging in ages from 26 to 13, and two of whom are still at home. Our entire family shares a love of people and community, and we have all been active over many years advocating at local and state levels for important issues, organizations, and candidates that promote freedom, strengthen families, and make Iowa a better place to live, raise a family, and operate a business.

 

My passion for people and community is part of my daily professional life, too. As president of the legal division for a Nashville-based national charitable estate and gift planning firm, I have helped direct billions of dollars to charitable causes around the country! I am also a founding partner of the Hagenow Gustoff & Karas law firm, which we founded in 2009 with an express purpose of making a difference for causes that matter to Iowans. I am a small businessman who knows the struggles of making payroll and everything else that keeps small business owners awake at night. 

 

I have also been a longtime volunteer board member for numerous nonprofit organizations and active in local church leadership circles. My wide range of volunteer activities have included Emmaus Bible College (Board of Trustees), Habitat for Humanity of Iowa (Board Member and President), Ruth Harbor Ministries (Board Member), Iowa State Bar Association (various committees), school choice and parental organizations, and serving eight years on the State Central Committee of the Republican Party of Iowa (including the honor of being selected in each of those terms by my peers to serve as the party’s Treasurer).

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It is an honor to serve the residents of House District 40 and all Iowans in the Iowa Legislature, and I ask your help in continuing to do so!