John Donovan

I have been a State Farm agent since 2007. Prior to that I worked in public affairs for the oil and gas industry, managed a membership organization the Santa Maria Valley Contractors Association and ran the Rideshare program for the County of San Luis Obispo.  They were all great jobs and my first job as program coordinator of the California Coastal Operators Group is what led me to the Central Coast, which I knew absolutely nothing about, when I moved here in 1990.  I was born and raised in New Jersey near NYC, spent a lot of times in cities and prior to moving to California in 1989 where I lived in San Francisco, I had lived for 2 years in Tokyo.  I was a city boy, I thought.  Well, after living on the Central Coast for six-months, making a new social circle and adjusting to the more relaxed lifestyle compared to a city, I was convinced that the Central Coast was where I wanted to live. Prior to moving to the California, I was a professional basketball player in Europe and Japan from 1984-1989.  I chose to become a State Farm agent after a good friend of mine, since retired, who worked for State Farm hounded me to look at the agent opportunity.  When I did, I learned so much about State Farm and the benefits of being an agent, that I left a secure public service job (my mom would be rolling over in her grave!) so I could hitch my wagon to State Farm, which I did in 2005.  I was slated to open my agency in the fall of 2005, however I had a slight health setback (aorta replacement) that put my opening back until March of 2006.  I made a 50 mile commute each way, each day from our home to Nipomo.  We were contemplating a move to Nipomo when State Farm asked me if I would be willing to switch agent's office from Nipomo to Atascadero. Hummmm, a 50 mile commute one way to an 8 mile commute one way. Sign me up!  I've been here in Atascadero since February of 2007 and here I will remain for the foreseeable future.  I've helped raise 5 daughters (3 step and 2 of our own) and I have loved being a dad.  I married my lovely wife, Sharon, in the year 2000 and I only met her because I knew her brother and her parents long before I met her.  Funny how things work out sometimes.