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Larry W. Ishmael (born June 22, 1952) is the son of an Irish American mother and Native American father. He currently lives in Redmond, Washington and is a candidate for the US House of Representatives.

Early life, education and career Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Ishmael is the son of a retired federal law enforcement officer father, and an accountant mother. His father is of Native American heritage (Muscogee Creek Nation), so the Ishmael family moved to Oklahoma as part of the Creek migration from the Southeastern US to the Indian Territory (modern day Oklahoma) and their descendants are active members in the tribe. Larry graduated from Oklahoma City’s Putnam City High School, the University of Oklahoma ( HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bachelor_of_Arts" B.A., HYPERLINK "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economics" Economics/Spanish), The Thunderbird School of Global Management (MBA), and will graduate from the University of Stellenbosch (Western Cape, South Africa) (Ph.D. Economics w/ specialization in Sustainable Development) in December 2012.

Working Career Upon graduation from Thunderbird, Ishmael began his working career despite being accepted to the London School of Economics. His early career was in the construction industry where he worked for the next eleven years where he traveled to more than 100 countries and served on the industry board of directors. His next career was as a Vice President of a former Boeing Company subsidiary, which is what brought him to the Seattle area. In 1991 he founded the Suasor Consulting Group, Ltd., a consultancy company that did business development work for numerous Fortune 500 companies as well as the US government’s US Agency for International Development. His company became one of the true pioneers of the privatization movement in Latin America where they worked on privatizing numerous government entities and services. Ishmael stated that his greatest achievement was as an architect of the largest Clean Air program in the world implemented in 2007 in São Paulo, Brazil. Ishmael began his latest career as a business professor at Northwest University in Kirkland, WA, a school affiliated with the Assemblies of God denomination. He has taught courses in Economic Development, Business Ethics, Business Negotiations, Principles of Management, and Corporate Strategies to undergraduates and MBA students.

Political campaigns Ishmael decided to run for the local School Board in 2003 after a contentious teachers’ strike. Seeing the need for transparency in government, Ishmael won election and went on to serve as a Board member his first year, then moving up to Board President in his second year. The school district hired a new superintendent of schools and is now achieving the highest test results in the state for standardized tests at public schools. His rise to Board Chairman put him in collaboration with City Council Members, Mayors, and State Legislators where he testified on occasion. His popularity caused him to be approached about running for Congress in the 1st Congressional District in 2006 and 2008 facing incumbent Jay Inslee. In 2010, Ishmael was working on his Ph.D. and chose not to run, but has recently entered the race again for the 1st Congressional District in Washington state for 2012 as it is an open seat.

Personal life Ishmael is married to Susan Frances (Francie) Ishmael. They were college sweethearts at the University of Oklahoma where the pair graduated in 1974. They have three grown sons, two of which are married and one who is still single. Clay is married to Erin Louise Ishmael live in Issaquah and they have two children: Cody, 2, and Alexa, 6 months. Greg and Joy Osundwa Ishmael live in Burkina-Faso (West Africa)where they are both school teachers, and they have a new baby girl named, ??. Son, Reese, is pursuing his masters in education after spending two years living in South Korea.

Ishmael has many outside interests, which he pursues vigorously. He is a certified professional ski instructor and enjoys snow skiing all over the globe. Ishmael is an avid tennis player and plays in tournaments and recreationally frequently. He enjoys dual sport motorcycling and has ridden throughout the US, Canada, and South Africa. But most of all, Ishmael enjoys spending time with his family and friends.

Community Involvement Ishmael learned at an early age the importance of being an active citizen in his community from his mother. He has always been involved in his community wherever he has lived, but especially so on the Eastside of Seattle. Larry’s involvement as a board vice president on the Issaquah Ski Council, as a Rotarian, as the Chairman of the Issaquah Chamber of Commerce, as the Board President of the Issaquah School District, as a Board member at his family church, as a Board Chairman at a local childcare facility, and as a Board member on one of Overlake Hospital’s boards.

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