About James Roman
I was born on a cold snowy day in November 1971. My birth turned out to be a premonition of the future, since I was born on my actual due date and in the middle of the day. Throughout my life, I have prided myself of being on time and courteous of other's time. Unfortunately, at that time, my mother was forced out of high school because she was so young. Without a high school diploma, my mother had five children (me and my four sisters). Yes, I have four sisters and no brothers. Throughout the 1970s, my family experienced layoffs due to downturns in the steel industry. During these years, we were the victims of severe domestic violence. I can remember watching my mother being brutally beaten and both my mother and grandmother coming very close to being killed. This has developed in me an empathy for single mothers and domestic violence victims.
During my teen years, I turned to my academics and sports as my outlet to escape the domestic violence. Wrestling and football were the first outlets that allowed me to excel at something. My passion for sports and the lessons learned in sports matured throughout this time. Football taught me how to work as a team to achieve a goal and wrestling taught me how to achieve great things as an individual. One of the things I loved most about wrestling was that it is a great sport that shows you get directly out of it what you put into it. I was able to achieve great success as a WPIAL champion wrestler, a 15-1 record in high school and finished as the 5th rank wrestler in the state. My foundation in sports is just one of the reasons why I believe in meritocratic ideals, the ideals that people progress based on their abilities, talents and own effort.
Throughout my life, I have focused on my family. Having four sisters, a single mother and a grandmother taught me great respect for women. My mother started out raising our family in public housing and on welfare while getting her GED, working her way through undergraduate school at the University of Pittsburgh and finally achieving great success by graduating from Law School. By far, my mother is the greatest influence on my life. In order to help my mother, my four sisters and I had to pick up with helping each other to allow our mother time to study and get through school. I fondly remember waiting up until my mother got home late at night and getting to discuss the days events. Through these conversations, she taught me that hard work, dedication to self improvement, focus on education and passion for life were the keys to success.
On May 22, 1997, I met my future wife, Janine Roman. We got married on May 29, 1999. This led to us having our incredible children. Adelina, 18; Gracie 16; & Maxmilian 10. Unfortunately, our marriage ended in a divorce, but we remain friends today and enjoy all of our children's activity together. Adelina will be graduating early from high school and attending Youngstown State University on a soccer scholarship. Gracie has been playing volleyball, competitive cheer and modeling. Max is a young boy, full of energy, playing every sport possible and desires to be better than Steph Curry (NBA player for Golden State Warriors).
I have always loved the idea of running for office. Growing up during the Reagan administration gave me a conservative approach to life. During high school, I had an internship with the Chief Judge in Westmoreland County. In college, I had an internship with the Pittsburgh City Council. Since that time, I have worked on numerous political campaigns for some great people and have finally decided that now is the time for me to seek to become Washington County's next Register of Wills. I consider myself a non-career politician who is down to earth and relatable to people. Honestly, I am fed up with electing career insiders/career politicians who only perpetuate the high taxes and overspending we have been experiencing in Pennsylvania. It is time to stop electing these political insiders and start with a fresh approach to effectively create the change Pennsylvanians desperately need.
I believe I am personable, intelligent and professional enough to get the job done and done right! While I am a non-insider and not a career politician, I've worked hard throughout my career and developed an extensive resume. Early in my career, I thought of pursuing my law degree. A wish person told me to get a job with a law firm and determine for yourself what being a lawyer is like. I have worked for some of the largest law firms in the world and Pittsburgh market (Jones Day Revis & Pogue). I started in the mailroom and worked my way up to a paralegal position. I also worked for the Pietragallo Law Firm and was given an award as "Employee of the Year". I take great pride in being recognized for my hard work and dedication. I will continue this hard work and dedication as Washington County's next Register of Wills.
After working for law firms for years, I was able to obtain a job as the Director of Intellectual Property for the NASA Classroom of the Future. This position allowed me to present multi-million programs to U.S. Senator Byrd from West Virginia, the U.S Department of Education and others. During this time, I also became an Adjunct College Professor for local colleges and universities. I continued to teach Business and History courses until 2012. While teaching college, I continued my professional career with several companies before getting into full-time management consulting for Fortune 500 companies that allowed me to live and travel all over the country. Companies would hire me to develop, manage and create strategic planning, organizational development and corporate training programs.
I have devoted my life to always giving back to the community. For over 20 years, I have organized large Toys for Tots events to ensure no child wakes up without at least one present under their Christmas tree. It is important for me to always have my children involved in these events and teach them to give back when they can. Over the years, we have organized Thanksgiving dinners for the homeless, fundraisers for needy families, and will continue to give back to the community through the organization of different events.
I try to follow a good Christian life and believe in Jesus Christ and raising honest, respectful children. As a child, I would walk by myself to the local Lutheran Church each Sunday. I remember the Pastor telling me that others in the congregation would complain because I couldn't afford to dress "appropriately" for church services. It was great to know he invited me back again-and-again, no matter what I could wear. I try to continue a spiritual life with my children. My children were baptized at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church in Peters Township and we have been attending The Bible Chapel for the past few years. Proven exceptional and unmatched educational background with 30 years of award winning professional experience to be Washington County's next Register of Wills.
It's Time for Change in Washington County!
Vote for James Roman for Register of Wills!