What makes you the best candidate for this office?
I have spent a career in serving others, whether in the public or non-profit sectors. I was the first township administrator in Miami County, serving in Bethel Township. For three years, the township government worked with residents, developers and the County to stop the encroachment of Huber Heights into the rural, tight-knit community that is Bethel Township. It certainly wasn’t always easy, but we were able to create the foundation that preserved Bethel Township’s community while providing water and sewer service to those portions of the community that needed it, which was pivotal to stop the annexations that could have occurred.
I also served the City of Piqua in their Development Department and was part of a team that worked hard to improve the quality of life in the community. There were a number of physical improvements we were able to accomplish; for example the Fort Piqua Plaza was a large project in which I worked in a critical role. I also secured the funding for other transformative projects such as the environmental remediation and demolition of the Piqua Memorial Medical Center. In my days as a grant writer in Piqua, I was able to secure over $12 million in financing for a number of projects in the community.
I moved on to become the Executive Director of one of the county’s largest non-profit organizations, The New Path, Inc., which is the outreach arm of Ginghamsburg Church. Each year, at New Path, we serve over 50,000 individuals through our Food Pantries, GED classes, Transportation Programs and other human service areas. All done with a team of eleven staff members and an army of over four hundred volunteers.
As part of my responsibilities at New Path, I also work with a number of other non-profit organizations that serve some of our most vulnerable residents. I am a board member of our Miami County Continuum of Care, which last year provided over 5,000 rides to individuals that needed transportation to work.
