Jason and Heidi both grew up in Michigan and even attended the same college without ever meeting — until Heidi’s brother introduced them at the Bay County Gun Club. “My brother told me about this guy he thought was perfect for me,” recalled Heidi. “He was a regular member there, shooting on Sundays with his dad.” 

Their first meeting led to another date and then another. By January, they were engaged, and by November, they were married. “We were married a year later,” said Heidi, warmly. “He said our lives will be an adventure together, and that it has been.”

Jason’s career path has been as dynamic as the couple’s personal adventures. From dreams of becoming a Secret Service agent, to an internship in law enforcement, to an esteemed career in the firearms and ammunition industry. 

To begin, Jason attended the University of Oxford for his postgraduate studies, explaining, “I actually chose Oxford because there are no tests in class; you have to debate the professor on the subjects. I would much rather debate someone than take a standardized test. Of note, I also won the debate at Oxford, where they give the class a subject and you debate the class and then the professor. The subject (many years ago) was on immigration.”

After college, Jason forged ahead on his dream to become a Secret Service agent. “I even interned at Saginaw, MI U.S. Secret Service Field Office but quickly learned that the job was more about examining counterfeit money than protecting the president. That’s when I realized my path was meant to be somewhere else,” he shared.

So, Jason steadily worked his way from sales rep to Chairman and CEO of The Kinetic Group — the largest ammunition manufacturer in the world, owning CCI, Federal, Fiocchi, Hevi Shot, Remington and Speer. “That’s the American dream,” said Jason. “We live it every day. Coming from rural Michigan to where we are today is pretty amazing.” 

Life here has been about sharing the values he grew up with — hard work, self-reliance and service. He imagines entering politics one day, ideally in a role that’s about true public service rather than personal gain. “I think political jobs should be unpaid. It should be about serving the public, not yourself,” he said. “I feel politicians should have the same set of rules that private sector employees have, like a 401k, not a taxpayer funded pension, term limits so it isn’t a career, no lobbying allowed when you leave office, etc. All of these things just make people get into politics for the right reasons. Far too often, in my opinion, politicians are just in it for themselves and forget who/how they got there.”

For Heidi, before becoming a stay-at-home mom, she had an exciting career in ophthalmology — a chapter of her life which was anything but ordinary. She once worked as a contract assistant to an ophthalmologist at the Springfield Federal Medical Center, a prison that also served as a medical facility for inmates. During her time there, Heidi walked the same halls with some notorious figures, including mobster John Gotti and Woody Harrelson’s father.

“It was quite the experience,” she admitted. “I worked alongside the ophthalmologist during surgeries, including cataract surgery and even a cornea transplant, right there in the prison.”

Over the years, work and wanderlust have taken the Vanderbrinks from Michigan to Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Minnesota and finally Texas. “We knew as we were aging, we wanted to live where it was warm,” said Heidi, with a laugh. “Jason’s an avid hunter, and living in Texas is a great opportunity for that. Plus, the politics here are more aligned with our values.” Jason quipped, “and taxes.”

Hunting happens to be a shared passion, something Jason introduced to Heidi early on in their relationship. The family particularly loves adventuring in Africa, a place the Vanderbrinks have visited 15 times so far. “It’s a wonderful opportunity,” shared Heidi, “We’ve harvested game that’s gone directly to feed entire villages — meat they wouldn’t otherwise have.” Jason elaborated, “We really feel it is important to explain to the greater public about the benefits hunting does for local communities around the globe. While hunting can get a bad reputation, it is generally through misinformation or lack of education on the subject. When we go to Africa or Mongolia, or other rural areas in the world, our money for the fees goes to the local communities, the local rancher, the landowner. The community uses the money to help the communities out, whether it be water projects so the community has fresh water, building new schools, providing text books for the children, or funding various projects that are needed. When you harvest the animal, there isn’t anything more rewarding in the world than to see the local communities coming out to the harvest site and taking back all of the meat to their families. Many times, this is the only time the locals get protein to eat. If the population would better understand that the animals are not wasted and the local communities depend on hunting to get the meat, they would better understand why hunting is necessary and why local communities depend on it for economic reasons and health.”