Growing up, Ben spent half his time with his mother and step-father on a farm located on the outskirts of Salem, Oregon. There he developed a sincere respect for the natural world spending countless days exploring the outdoors. The other half of his time Ben lived with his father, a math and science teacher, from whom he discovered a passion for creative technical exploration. Ben's life-long curiosity and need for creative expression resulted in uncounted esoteric projects ranging from simple tinkering in the workshop to interactive gallery installations.

After graduating from South Salem High School, Ben spent a year at Bennington College in Vermont where he focused on everything from theater architecture to digital music. His life took a different path when he decided to pursue a technical career rather than continue at Bennington. After working on almost every aspect of software engineering, Ben found his place in the realm of interaction design where he met Ryan Russell and Chris Caddell. Upon hearing about Ryan's vision for For The Next, Ben immediately jumped on board as it presented not only an opportunity to couple his technical and creative talents, but also a chance to make a profound, positive impact on the world.