John Flerlage (born 1958) is a retired U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel and the former Democratic nominee for

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

Colorado's 6th congressional district Colorado's 6th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Colorado. Located in central Colorado, the district encompasses much of the eastern part of the Denver metropolitan area, including all of Aurora, as well as ...

. He is currently a Boeing 767 captain flying international routes for

Delta Air Lines Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline, along w ...

. Flerlage is a member of the

Air Line Pilots Association, International The Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) is the largest pilot union in the world, representing more than 59,000 pilots from 35 U.S. and Canadian airlines. ALPA was founded on 27 July 1931 and is a member of the AFL-CIO and the Canadia ...

, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Chamber of Commerce.

Early life, education and career

Flerlage was born in Boston on January 29, 1958. His father, Stuart Q. Flerlage, Jr., was born in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

, OH. He moved to Cambridge, MA to attend

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

. He later attended

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...

and the Episcopal Divinity School. He practiced

psychiatry Psychiatry is the specialty (medicine), medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psych ...

for over 30 years in Brookline and Waltham, MA, until 1989 when he died. He had six children, five boys consecutively, with John being the third, and a daughter. John’s mother, Dr. Patricia Ewalt, was born in Newton, MA. While raising four boys, she completed her doctorate in social work and eventually became Dean of the School of Social Work at the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

. She later retired from the same position at the

University of Hawaii A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

. Flerlage lived in Massachusetts, Maine, Virginia, Florida, Texas, Arizona and California during his school and Marine Corps years. While a freshman at

Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philant ...

in Waterville, Maine, Flerlage joined the Marine Corps officer training program in 1977. He earned a BA in mathematics from Colby College in 1980, and furthered his education by completing the requirements of the Air Force

Air War College The Air War College (AWC) is the senior Professional Military Education (PME) school of the U.S. Air Force. A part of the United States Air Force's Air University, AWC emphasizes the employment of air, space, and cyberspace in joint operation ...

Marine Corps career

Flerlage served 22 years in the Marine Corps before retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel from the

Marine Corps Reserve The Marine Forces Reserve (MARFORRES or MFR), also known as the United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) and the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, is the reserve force of the United States Marine Corps. It is the largest command, by assigned p ...

in 2000. Over his eleven active-duty years and eleven years in the Reserves, Flerlage flew the F/A-18 Hornet and

A-4 Skyhawk The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a single-seat subsonic carrier-capable light attack aircraft developed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps in the early 1950s. The delta-winged, single turbojet engined Skyhawk was designed ...

in historic squadrons such as the VMA-214 Blacksheep, operating in California, Japan, South Korea and the Philippines, and the VMFA-142 Flying Gators (based in Florida and Georgia). He served in various Squadron and Group level leadership and staff positions; and taught classes in world affairs, strategic commitments and the implementation of fighters and other tactical aircraft at the Marine aviation advanced tactics school (Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1). During his reserve years, Flerlage also volunteered and flew missions in support of NATO operations in Bosnia, and in 1996, he was chosen to fly the Hornet aboard the in the first Marine Reserve carrier qualifications to be held in over fifteen years.

Political career

Flerlage has been active in local (Jefferson County) politics, serving at the precinct (PCP) and house district level (Treasurer HD 28). He has also volunteered on local, congressional, and presidential campaigns. Flerlage is currently a member of the leadership team of the South JeffCo Democrats. In 2008, he was elected as a Barack Obama delegate to the Jefferson County, CD 6 and Colorado State Conventions.

2010 U.S. House of Representatives campaign

Flerlage challenged Republican incumbent Mike Coffman for the seat. Also running were Libertarian nominee Rob McNeally and Independent Michael S. Kearns. Mike Coffman defeated John Flerlage in the general election.

Personal life

He and his wife, Helena, a naturalized citizen from Sweden, moved to old Littleton in Arapahoe County in 1995 and then to their home in south Jefferson County in 1997. He has volunteered regularly at the schools of his three children: David (21), who graduated from Columbine High School and now attends Columbia University; Lisa (17), currently a junior at Columbine; and Karl (11). Flerlage played varsity hockey in high school and college and continues to play on a local adult team. He particularly enjoys coaching hockey. He started the Columbine Hockey Club and later became a high school coach at Columbine when that school formed a CHSAA (varsity) hockey team. Flerlage is a Level 5 coach with USA Hockey and is also a member of the Colorado Governor's Council for Physical Fitnes

References

An early start: South Jeffco Democrat eager to face off with Coffman in CD6
''Columbine Courier'', March 10, 2009
Democrat seeks to unseat Coffman
''The News Press'', February 10, 2010
Interview with David Sirota
AM 760, Denver, Colorado, September 15, 2009

Aurora Sentinel, October 13, 2010
Dem puts up fight in GOP-heavy district
Denver Post, October 4, 2010
Flerlage/Coffman debate
Colorado Public Television, KBDI 12, October 8, 2010
Your Show-Congressional candidate John Flerlage interview
9News.com KUSA, September 5, 2010
South Jeffco's Flerlage touts his fiscal approach
Columbine Courier, October 12, 2010

Colorado Election 2010, CD6 with Aaron Harber, KCDO Channel 3, October 17, 2010
Tim Danahey Show- interview with Flerlage
Castle Rock Radio, October 27, 2010

External links

John Flerlage for Congress
''official campaign site'' *
Campaign contributions
at OpenSecrets.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Flerlage, John United States Marine Corps officers Living people Colorado Democrats 1958 births Colby College alumni Politicians from Boston People from Jefferson County, Colorado American aviators Delta Air Lines people Military personnel from Massachusetts Military personnel from Colorado