John was born and raised in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories and his family moved to the Okanagan region in 1985 where he graduated high school before attending college in Lethbridge and Castlegar. John and his wife Becky have made Kamloops home since 1996 and have two boys.

John developed an interest in the financial services industry when he was involved in the forestry sector and during that time, committed to taking the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) Education Program. Soon after, he earned his Branch Manager Certificate in 2008, and completed the CFP Program in 2010.