Why I'm Running

I Decided it was Time to Step Forward

I decided to run because, after nearly six years working in Wallaceburg, I wanted to contribute to the community in a different way.

Through my work at the Wallaceburg Adult Activity Centre, I saw what can happen when residents, volunteers, businesses, community organizations, and municipal partners work together. I saw people give their time, share their skills, and find creative ways to make their community stronger—not because anyone required them to, but because they cared about where they lived.

I also heard the frustrations. Residents spoke about infrastructure, economic development, community safety, access to services, and the feeling that Wallaceburg sometimes has to fight harder to receive attention and investment.

Those concerns stopped feeling like issues affecting only the community where I worked. Wallaceburg had become part of my life, and I cared deeply about what happened here.

Over time, I began asking myself a more direct question: if I believed my experience could help, was I willing to step forward and use it?

My answer was yes.

Why I Believe I’m Prepared

I’m not running because I think caring about the community is enough on its own. Council is responsible for difficult decisions involving public money, infrastructure, services, legal obligations, and competing priorities. Good intentions matter, but so do preparation, judgment, and the ability to follow through.

My education and professional experience have prepared me for that responsibility. I hold a Bachelor of Commerce in Business Administration and Economics and have built my career in non-profit and community leadership.

At WAAC, I worked with budgets, boards, grants, partnerships, municipal processes, facility needs, and community programming. Successful applications I prepared secured approximately $475,000 in competitive funding for Wallaceburg, and I managed more than $750,000 in grant funding overall.

I also served as the Centre’s primary contact with the Municipality on lease renewals and amendments, accessibility and facility improvements, and other projects. Through my municipal committee work, I have gained further experience bringing community perspectives forward and working within municipal processes.

That experience has taught me that identifying a need is only the beginning. You must understand the details, ask the right questions, find appropriate funding, bring the right people together, and keep working until an idea becomes something residents can actually use.

How I Think About the Job

I’m not running because I think I already have every answer.

Municipal issues are rarely as simple as they first appear. Decisions can affect residents, businesses, organizations, and communities in very different ways. There are often financial, legal, operational, and long-term consequences that are not immediately obvious.

I believe a councillor’s responsibility is to listen carefully, ask questions, and do the homework. That means hearing directly from residents and businesses while also seeking information from municipal staff, community organizations, and people with relevant expertise or lived experience.

It also means being willing to say, “I need to learn more about that,” and being willing to change your position when reliable new information warrants it.

But listening and research cannot become excuses for avoiding decisions. Eventually, priorities must be set, choices must be made, and councillors must be prepared to explain what they decided and why.

To me, thoughtful decision-making means understanding an issue well enough to make a decision that I can explain, stand behind, and act on.

Why Ward 5?

I live in Chatham, and I understand why people ask why I chose to run in Ward 5 rather than in the ward where I live.

For nearly six years, I worked in Wallaceburg and became part of the community’s everyday life. I built relationships with residents, businesses, volunteers, community organizations, municipal staff, and members of council. I came to understand Wallaceburg’s strengths, its concerns, and the frustration many residents feel when the community has to fight harder to receive attention and investment.

It has been suggested that I could have run in Ward 8 and become an additional voice supporting Wallaceburg. However, Ward 8 residents deserve councillors whose decision to run is centred on representing them. It would not have felt right to ask Ward 8 voters to elect me primarily so that I could act as an unofficial third councillor for another ward.

I chose to be honest about the community I felt called to represent.

Although I was not born and raised in Wallaceburg, I believe that gives me a useful perspective. I have spent enough time working in the community to understand many of its concerns and build meaningful relationships, but I can also approach issues with fresh eyes. I can respect Wallaceburg’s history and listen to those who know it best while still asking questions and considering whether familiar ways of doing things continue to serve the community well.

My experience working with municipal staff, members of council, and several Chatham-Kent committees has also taught me how municipal processes work and what it takes to move an issue beyond discussion. Strong advocacy matters, but so do preparation, evidence, relationships, and the ability to earn support from councillors representing communities across Chatham-Kent.

My responsibility would be to provide dedicated representation for Ward 5 while building the relationships across council needed to turn that advocacy into meaningful results.

What You Can Expect From Me

If elected, I will not promise that every problem can be solved quickly or that every worthwhile project can be funded immediately. Municipal resources are limited, and responsible leadership sometimes requires difficult choices.

What I can promise is that I will:

Listen to residents and remain accessible
Research issues carefully and consider them from all angles
Ask questions when information or reasoning is unclear
Scrutinize spending and consider long-term consequences
Explain my decisions honestly
Advocate strongly for Wallaceburg and the surrounding area
Work constructively with others to move good ideas forward
Follow through on the commitments I make

That is what Thoughtful Decisions. Meaningful Action. means to me. It is not simply a campaign slogan. It reflects how I have approached my work and how I would approach the responsibility of representing Ward 5.

I am running because I know Wallaceburg, care about its future, and believe I have the experience, judgment, and determination to serve it well.

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