Mike Gorgone, Northwest Academy’s security guard, may appear intimidating at school but outside of work, he’s a loving dog owner, avid tabletop roleplaying enthusiast and a passionate writer.
Gorgone has been working at NWA for the past three years. He began as a security guard working for an outside organization called Portland Patrol, but was soon offered an alternative position through the school.
“That’s still the company that Caleb [Jones], the other security guard, works for, but this last summer the school hired me directly,” said Gorgone “I now work for Northwest Academy.”
Before Portland Patrol, Gorgone worked in the beer industry as a merchandising team leader, where he organized deliveries. He did that for almost a decade.
At NWA, Gorgone is both a security guard and the Security Coordinator making him in charge of the plans and schedules for Jones and himself.
“Mike maintains and builds the schedules,” said Rachel Torchia, Head of High School and Middle School. “They have shifts all throughout the school day.”
Gorgone’s job is to ensure the safety of the students, staff and property. If there are any individuals around the school that aren’t permitted to be, he will kindly ask them to be on their way.
“If they are doing anything untoward, I check in with them and ask them nicely to take it somewhere else,” said Gorgone.
Throughout his time at NWA, Gorgone has become very close to the school and the people.
“I have come to know and love the community of NWA,” said Gorgone. “It is such a robust representation of creativity and how the school focuses on the arts are really cool. Those aren’t the types of experiences I was exposed to in high school.”
Gorgone was born in Newton, Mass. but moved to the west coast when he was three years old. He has two younger twin sisters, Amy and Beth. Amy lives in Oregon and Beth is on the east coast with Gorgone’s two nephews.
Gorgone’s father was a cop in Portland until he retired and moved back to Massachusetts. He previously worked in the Coast Guard where he met Gorgone’s mother.
“My mom was a military brat and she was raised in Hawaii for most of her life so Hawaiian cuisine was a big part of my childhood,” said Gorgone.
While Gorgone was born in Massachusetts he considers Oregon his home.
“I have lived in Portland or its suburbs for basically my entire life,” said Gorgone.
Gorgone went to West Linn High School where, in his words, he was “a nerd/jock” because he loved school but also played on the football team, as a lineman.
After high school he went to three colleges: Portland State University, Clackamas Community College and Portland Community College where he studied English and Creative Writing.
At Clackamas Community College, Gorgone was highly immersed in the arts programs, participating in various art clubs and classes.
“I was part of the improv scene and stand-up comedy groups,” said Gorgone.
Outside of school, Gorgone and his partner of seven years, Emily, have a labradoodle named Rocky and two cats named Jadzia and Seven after the Star Trek characters. They first met at Gorgone’s sister’s Halloween party in 2017.
“She was a jellyfish and I was a Pokemon trainer and our eyes met,” said Gorgone.
On the day of his sister’s party he was debating whether or not to attend and decided to flip a coin. To this day, he keeps that coin in his pocket as a good luck charm, one that signifies a choice that led him to meet Emily.
Some of Gorgone’s favorite things to do are writing and playing tabletop games like Dungeons & Dragons. He has a group of people that he’s been playing games with for over 20 years. One of Gorgone’s biggest aspirations in life is to write a fantasy novel.
“I want to be able to pick a book out of Barnes and Noble and see my name,” said Gorgone.
Recently, Gorgone attended one of NWA’s annual retreats in an effort to engage more with students.
“Mike went on the sixth grade retreat to the zoo and dressed up like he was going on a safari,” said Torchia.
From his light-hearted manner and spirited costumes students have come to know Gorgone as more than just their security guard.
“Ever since I saw him dressed up as one of the Ghostbusters for Halloween I thought he was a pretty cool guy and he does a good job of protecting the school,” said Lucius Baker, NWA sophomore.
Gorgone has invited anyone who would like to talk to him about any safety trouble to come and do so.
“If any students or staff have any safety concerns, if they are feeling unsafe or unsure about something I highly encourage people to come up to me and ask me questions,” said Gorgone.
This was beautiful! 🥹