MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: KEVIN CLARK

Could you tell us who you are and what it is that you do?

I am Jack of All Trades and Master of Nothing. Well, when it comes to my work that is. My name’s Kevin Clark. I’m originally from the Seattle area and moved to Charlottesville from Bend, Oregon two years ago. I currently work at AtlanticBT which is based out of Raleigh. I’m daddy to two kiddos 7 and 11 that keep me busy, laughing, and out of my head in a good way.

I’ve been developing sites and applications on the web since 2011. I’m mostly comfortable in server side programming at this point, but I know enough CSS and JavaScript from my past to get in trouble with and irritate the full time Front Enders. I can hang out with the Dev Ops and not be too annoying with my questions and even help when it’s all hands on deck. 

Most importantly I know how to self host our Minecraft server for the kiddos and I. 

What do you love about the work?

I like helping people. 

Being able to listen to what a client, a co-worker, a friend, or a relative wants or is trying to figure out and then help them do it. Contributing to the process is pretty satisfying on all fronts. I like the puzzles that get tossed my way every day. Familiar and unfamiliar ones. I mean, to be fair, sometimes I don’t. Especially if it involves working with third party vendor support. Ugh. Oh, estimating projects. Double ugh. Not fun, but so necessary. I like having the time to learn new tools, or better yet, make a new tool to scratch my own itch. That’s really the best. Time’s not always on my side, though. I like to write code. 

How did you arrive at this point in your career? What’s your backstory?

I got into Web Development via an Associates degree in Web Application Programming. I spent the first 8 years working on a variety of WordPress, Drupal, and Makor (a custom framework) sites. Then I worked on a web application running built with Symfony which managed patients, prescriptions, etc for orthodontists. I did that for 3 years before moving to AtlanticBT. I kind of miss working on one codebase, one project, one product like I did there, but I very much like the people I work with now. 

I spent the first 8 years being an introverted, lone developer, who wasn’t great at asking questions. It helped me realize that I could teach myself new things, survive my own mistakes, and celebrate my little wins. However, I’ve found it’s nice to have comrades in arms these last few years. Most especially at AtlanticBT.

Has there been a light switch moment, a turning point (or two), professionally &/or personally along the way?

I don’t know that I have had any real huge light switch moments with work. Lot’s of smaller light bulbs. Daddy ain’t no genius so I’ve mostly relied on my stubbornness to find my way. 

Personally a turning point was when I first started learning Vipassana meditation and doing long term retreats. I don’t get to do long term retreats so much now, but it has helped me recognize what was going on in my experience and re-surfaced some of the mystery and awe that I think got lost along the way. 

Who or what has been your greatest influence? 

I had a boss/friend/co-worker early on who gave me some good advice when I was stressing out about not being good enough. He said we do the best we can and it will either be good enough or it won’t. That sounds kind of ridiculous when I read it, but he was a genuinely kind and gracious person. When he said it, his tone and context wasn’t flippant, dismissive, or a slippery slope towards mediocre work. It came couched with his good intentions and efforts that reached beyond the work itself. I’ve tried to hold that over the years. It’s a resting in knowing my own intentions and efforts are true, even as I mess up.

On the non-work side I’d say Rodney Smith, my meditation teacher, has influenced me more than anything.

What are you currently working on, excited about, looking forward to?

Currently at work I am coding for, feature developing for, maintaining, etc various websites. One I am allowed to mention and is also one I have worked a fair amount on is Conduent.com. 

I don’t know I would say I am “excited” about that, but it is nice to have a longer term connection with a client and see the progress of the site towards their goals. 

I am excited and also looking forward to a project coming in which will involve some Python. I’ve never used Python “in production” and have only played around with it in personal time. It’s fun to be able to learn something new while getting paid for it.

What are you reading these days?

Touching the Infinite by Rodney Smith

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

About Grace by Anthony Doerr

Word snacks of poetry here and there - Mary Oliver, Jane Hirshfield, Mark Strand, etc 

Anything we missed that you might care to share (closing thoughts)?

Nada.