Dear Neighbors,
I am beyond ready to continue serving you, the residents of the 4th District. You have trusted me to lead and for that, I am forever grateful. As a social worker, I realize the political climate we're in is not good for our collective morale and degrades our health. We've seen our neighbors taken away by ICE, fencing blocking our paths, hostile infrastructure and fear used to manipulate, discriminate and harm.
I am a fierce protector with an unwavering love for my community. Your first line of defense is your local government and, as your Commissioner, I am not moved by fear. I am moved by pure love for my residents, my community and doing what is right. What you can count on me to do, is protect you and make sure you are healthy in mind, body and spirit. Over the last term, I've authored Board Actions to protect the County's contracted workforce, protect caregivers and children through a $10M investment into maternal and child health and oversaw over $200M in investments into our housing continuum from unsheltered homelessness to home ownership. Under my leadership, we've increased capacity for youth through a $15M expansion to our behavioral health center at 1800 Chicago. After surviving a heart attack in 2023, I made sure all women, especially Black and Indigenous women who die more frequently from cardiovascular disease, knew the symptoms and had resources for prevention by leading a $1M ongoing investment into heart health.
I am humbly asking for your continued support as I run for re-election to the Hennepin County Board. We must continue the work to keep our neighbors humanely housed, prioritize health and wellness, uplift environmental stewardship, repair harm and protect our friends and neighbors. It would be my honor to continue this work with you.
What We're Facing
As we look to the road ahead, Hennepin County and counties all across our state are facing massive cuts to basic needs programs like SNAP and healthcare. We need trusted and consistent leadership locally to solve for these disastrous losses to our social safety net. I strive to make Hennepin healthier, continue our nation-leading work to house people living outside and reducing our garbage footprint. Because of these values, I am committed to:
Seeking out new sources of revenue to fund healthcare, easing the burden on property tax payers.
Trying innovative approaches for residents to gain access to healthy, fresh and locally grown food.
Maintaining and restructuring the region's only level 1 adult and pediatric safety-net hospital, HCMC, to bring about financial stability, a welcoming work environment for all and supporting the world class care our patients deserve.
Increasing our investments into zero-waste, partnering with our cities and holding big waste producers in our County accountable for the trash they produce in order to accelerate the end of garbage incineration as soon as 2028.
Expanding and investing in Public Health approaches to healthy aging.
Continued advocacy for humane treatment spaces for substance use disorder in our communities.
Creating the structure needed to research reparative justice in Hennepin County.
I hope to earn your support and, If given the privilege to continue serving you on the County Board, I am certain we can accomplish all of these things and more.
