Mark Kleinschmidt Bio:

Mark Kleinschmidt has served on the Chapel Hill Town Council since December 2001. He is Chapel Hill's first openly gay Mayor and when elected to the Council, was the fifth openly-gay North Carolinian to be elected in the state's history. Mark began his career as a teacher and served as a social studies teacher at West Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte. In 1997, after being named by his peers as "Teacher of the Year," Mark returned to Carolina to pursue a Law degree. In 2000, Mark became a staff attorney at the Center for Death Penalty Litigation, representing indigent clients that faced execution throughout the state of North Carolina. In October of 2006, Mark took the position of executive director of the Fair Trial Initiative (FTI), where he currently works when not engaged in town business. Mark spends his free time with friends and family. His father is a retired U.S. Air Force chief master sergeant and his mother is a retired registered nurse. He has a twin sister, who lives locally on the Durham County side of town with her husband Greg and their cat Brando.

About The Monti:

The Monti is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization whose mission is to create community through the telling of stories. Each month, events are held around the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area and as far away as Greensboro. The goal is to create an intimate, open, and fun atmosphere where people can relate their personal experiences to one another through narrative. themonti.org/