Get To Know Me

Hello, my name is Josh Smead, and I’m running to represent Missouri’s 6th District in the United States House of Representatives.

I put this together to introduce myself and tell you about who I am. I am sure there is more to add, but hopefully, this will start to give you a sense of me and explain why I am running for Congress.

I am a father of four; I have a 1-year-old, a 4-year-old a 5-year-old, and a 6-year-old. I typically get up every day at about 6 am, whether I want to or not, with the kids, but my kids are by far the most important part of my life, and I am incredibly grateful to have my wife and children.

I am a licensed architect, as is my wife. We own our own small business, which is an architecture, design, and development company my wife started and has been running since 2021. Both of us have built our
careers in the Kansas City metro area. When I talk about my business and my work, a lot of times I say ‘we’ because I do everything with my wife.

Most of my architecture background has roots in large scale sports architecture projects and commercial architecture. I also work on residential, including some houses. An interesting fact I have come to learn, a huge portion of the US and global sports and entertainment architecture comes out of Kansas City. I have had great opportunities, and I am fortunate to have worked on some of the projects that have included NFL stadiums, NBA arenas, and university and professional league training and performance centers. I enjoyed sports architecture and always thought they had the ‘coolest’ projects; it’s one of the reasons that drew me to architecture (no pun intended). Sports projects tend to have very large budgets, community connections, and special features to make them unique buildings.

Small Business Minded

Over the last couple of years, I have transitioned from working at a firm to being my own boss. I joined my wife at the company in 2023, and we have been self-sufficient ever since. We work on commercial and residential projects in the Kansas City area, and I am a licensed General Contractor in the City of Liberty.

We started the construction portion of our company recently. I want to vertically integrate the design process, and the goal is to have the ability to design, and build our own projects and own the process
including construction.

We are currently building a detached garage building with an apartment unit up above, and we are doing the work ourselves. It’s a really cool project and I will do my best to share progress on the build as I am working on my campaign.

National Experience, Missouri Focused

Before I became an architect, I was born and raised in Harrisonburg, Virginia. My journey (like many
others) has taken me across the country to pursue an education. I received my Bachelors degree in Art
History from James Madison University in 2012, and in 2016 I got my Masters of Architecture from Iowa
State University.

My work experience, my travels, and the places I have lived, have shaped my perspective and strengthened my resolve to serve a higher purpose. I strongly believe in self-sufficiency, showing results, and being mindful of how projects will impact future generations.

The 6th District is where my four young children call home. My wife and I are building our lives and our
business here—literally constructing our first building in Liberty as part of our growing company. Missouri isn’t just where I live; it’s where I’m invested in the future, for my family and for all families in the 6th District.

I’m sure there is much more I can add, but I wanted to at least introduce myself and I am excited to keep meeting people and getting to know you too.