GENEVA – Ashtabula County Auditor Scott Yamamoto has a lot of knowledge he can pass on to the next generation.
As he spoke to the seniors in the Geneva High School National Honor Society at the Geneva Area Chamber of Commerce 2026 Spring Dinner at Geneva VFW Post 6846 on Monday, March 16, Yamamoto told the story of how he found happiness in his career and offered some advice.
“All right, seniors, some of you probably have your future mapped out for you with a laser focus,” Yamamoto said. “Some of you may not be completely sure of what you’re going to do and what your future holds, and it’s completely fine. You may feel pressure to choose. You may not be quite 100 percent of what the future holds for you, and I’m here to tell you it’s okay.”
The Spring Dinner has become a tradition as the Geneva Area Chamber of Commerce uses it to honor the seniors in the Geneva High School National Honor Society.
“In 2000, the Geneva Area Chamber started honoring seniors from Geneva High School, so on behalf of the Geneva Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, congratulations to the 2026 National Honor Society seniors and their parents,” GACOC First Vice President Brian Kelly said. “It is wonderful to be able to award the 16 Geneva High School National Honor Society seniors here tonight and the five who are not able to join us. The Geneva Area Chamber of Commerce commends you for your hard work and good grades.”
The NHS seniors, under Advisor Kim DeBacher, include Amelia Armington, Claire Cafaro, Gianna Markijohn, Kailyn Cerjan, Addelynn Sheppard, Camryn Bushnell, Amy Fernandez, Brooke Wright, Addison Satterfield, Chase Cinco, Bryce Peet, Jovan Sanchez, Sarah Cybulski, Riley Andrusis, William Dushney, Dominic Palmisano, Myles Colgan, Chloe Dodge, Paxton Galliazzo, Cailyn King and Isaiah Rose.
Each of the students received a gift bag with donations from Crawford Insurance, Old Firehouse Winery, Waste Management and Geneva Area Chamber of Commerce. They also received certificates from the Ashtabula County Commissioners, State Rep. David Thomas, Congressman Dave Joyce and the Geneva Area Chamber of Commerce.
“The Geneva Area Chamber of Commerce wants to wish each of you the very best luck in college and in all of your future endeavors,” Kelly said.
Yamamoto, also a father, served as the guest speaker for the dinner.
“As a parent of two adult daughters, my wife and I have been together since we were 16, so we’ve survived as a parent raising kids,” Yamamoto said. “I can tell you that you’re going to go through periods of uncertainty, ups, down, successes, a few failures. You might need a few alcoholic beverages from time to time. As your children age, believe it or not, and some of you may be able to attest to this, your children will thank you at some point, or at least, you’ll bear witness to some things that you instilled in them, and you’ll have what we call a proud parent moment.”
Yamamoto told the parents to be supportive and allow their teenagers to make mistakes.
“Some of you are going to be tested like you’ve never been tested before,” Yamamoto said. “Be strong, your partner, your spouse, your family and I stand before you as a survivor of child rearing. You will be transitioning from raising your child to support systems for them, and you just need to encourage them to succeed. It’s important that they learn from their mistakes, as well. It will only make them better, stronger, more resilient to the challenges ahead, even though, as a parent, a lot of times we want to help out. We want we don’t want to see them fail. We don’t want to see them struggle.”
Yamamoto advised the parents to let their kids know they’re proud.
“Moving forward, the kids, they have to own all of it,” Yamamoto said. “Their life isn’t yours anymore, Mom and Dad. You might lose a little hair. You might turn a little gray, but it’s okay. Be proud of your kids, and that’s your job now, make sure that you tell them that you’re proud. I found that with my daughters, nothing pleases them more than for my wife and I to tell them that we’re proud of some of their accomplishments.”
To the students, Yamamoto said that they should show gratitude.
“Believe it or not, it means a tremendous amount to them,” Yamamoto said. “Probably the most humbling thing for my wife and I is for our youngest to look at us and say, ‘You spent a lot of money for me to get this far, and I appreciate it.’ It means more to your parents than you can possibly know when you say thank you.”
Yamamoto told the students and their parents about the long path that led to him taking the position as the county auditor.
“I’m going to tell you a story about a guy who thought he knew what he wanted to do after high school but he ended up taking a few detours around along the way,” Yamamoto said. “I left a little town called Newbury after high school, and I said, ‘I’m out of here. This town has nothing for me. I’m never going back.’ Remember that I said that, and I said it out loud, and a bunch of people heard me.”
Yamamoto majored in accounting at the University of Akron using money he had earned and saved though restoring a hot rod and investing. That money ran out after a couple of years and Yamamoto returned home where he began working as an auto mechanic.
The money he earned was used to purchase tools to make his job easier in order to earn more money.
“I tried going back to school at night,” Yamamoto said. “I worked a full day, drove an hour to get to school at night. That didn’t work. I used to fall asleep while I was working on cars. My boss found me taking a nap in a car underneath the dashboard one day, so I had to quit school again.”
Yamamoto’s father-in-law-to-be, the Geauga County auditor at the time, pulled the youngster aside out of concern for his daughter’s future, and offered him an opportunity to see if the office offered a career he’d be interested in.
Real-estate appraisal for tax purposes, digital mapping and numbers analysis caught Yamamoto’s attention.
A job as a data collector for one of the companies working the for county auditor’s office followed. Yamamoto became an appraiser apprentice and, on the advice of a mentor, got back in school to finish his degree. He also went to school to become an appraiser. He bought a dilapidated house and later received a promotion to project manager.
Marriage, the death of his father-in-law, the finished remodel of his house and a promotion to vice president followed.
“At age 28, we sold our tiny city house for almost double what I paid for it, and we purchased a brand-new home down in Stark County,” Yamamoto said. “By age 32, I was recruited by the new Geauga County auditor to be their chief appraiser. That kind of started my journey into public service. But remember what I said about never going back? I had to eat those words because I was back. I was back in the county where I grew up.”
Yamamoto moved to the Lake County Auditor’s Office where he worked until his boss had a stroke and the office underwent changes in elected officials. He changed jobs three times at the age of 50 before he was offered a job as the real estate manager for David Thomas, who was the Ashtabula County auditor at the time.
A year later, Thomas was elected as a state representative and Yamamoto, with support from his family, said he’d like to be the auditor.
“It’s a weird story that I went through all these gyrations, and I went to school and I did this and I did that, but I’m here to tell you that you can find a path to happiness,” Yamamoto said. “I’ve never been happier than when I go to work every morning, believe it or not…I go to work with a smile on my face, and I come home from work with the same smile on my face, because I get to work with great people, and I work with great people in the public and it’s a wonderful feeling.”
“So if you’re not sure about what you’re going to do, it’s okay,” Yamamoto continued. “Sometimes you’ve just kind of got to let life take its path, and you’d be surprised at what you’re going to find. Keep the door open and never say never.”
Lastly, Yamamoto offered one last piece of advice.
“Another thing that I’ll tell you is it’s okay if you go away to school, learn something, get all kinds of knowledge and experience,” Yamamoto said. “Don’t forget to come home. It’s important. I’ve seen some pretty cool stories here in Ashtabula County, and I’m just proud to be here.”

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