My name is Donnie Suttles and I am representing one of two seats for the Marion District on the McDowell County Board of Education.  I was born in Marion Hospital in 1977. I attended Marion Elementary, East McDowell JR. High, and McDowell High School where I graduated in 1995. I am a graduate of Western Carolina University and hold degrees in Sociology, Physical Education, and a DFA in Spanish. I graduated from the Principals Executive Program through UNC-Chapel Hill in 2005. My wife Amy attended West Marion Elementary, West McDowell JR. High and graduated from McDowell High School in1996. She currently teaches at Marion Elementary where she has taught for 21 years. We have two children.  Our son Jayden is a graduate of McDowell High School and is a Freshman at Western Carolina University. Our daughter Maris is a Freshman at McDowell High School. I played professional baseball with the Cleveland Indians organization From 1998-2003.  I retired with an injury in 2004 and started teaching and coaching at McDowell High. I left McDowell High to become the head baseball coach and Football coach at TC Roberson High School in Buncombe County. I left TC after 4 years to take a baseball coaching position at Tennessee Tech University where I spent two years before being hired by the Pittsburg Pirates.  I stayed with the Pirates for a year before signing with the San Francisco Giants as the area supervisor scout. I spent 8 years with the Giants and was part of two World Series titles in 2012 and 2014. I currently help the Colorado Rockies as well as being the Majority owner of Big League Camp on Lake James. I am the National Baseball and Softball Rep for FieldTurf, the largest artificial turf company in the world. I am the Owner and President of Mountain Elite Sports, an artificial turf install and repair business.  I am a life member of West Court Baptist Church in Marion. I enjoy hunting, fishing, and spending time with my family. I ran for the McDowell County School Board to help in the growth of the county's education and athletic programs. I love to help children and to be able to do it where I was born and raised is a great honor. McDowell County schools are the fundamental building blocks of our kid's growth and success. I am looking forward to being a big part of the future structuring of the McDowell County School system.