About Me

I love Salida! I moved here 13 years ago, and the community embraced me from the start. Salida is doing great; our city council and especially city staff and commissions are doing an amazing job of building an excellent city. But I think we can do even better.

I've been in Salida since 2012 and has served the community in a number of capacities. I managed the Planned Parenthood health center in Salida for 5 years prior to my current role as the Executive Director of The Alliance, which I've has held for 6 years. (DISCLAIMER: My involvement with Planned Parenthood and The Alliance should not be construed to be an endorsement, explicit or implicit, of my candidacy for Salida City Council.) I've also been active in the arts in Salida, participating in Shakepeare in the Park, Rocky Mountain Horror Picture Show, and Wooden Rain, along with numerous other community theater and music productions. I've been so lucky to be able to be so integrated into the community and do so many cool things!

My time here and my work experience have given me two key qualifications for serving on City Council: strong relationships with leaders in a variety of areas of the community and the ability to look at problems from different angles and innovate creative solutions.

We all know that there will be significant financial challenges for the city in the coming years. We need to look at how we allocate resources with a new lens to identify opportunities for efficiency and innovation. As the Executive Director of a nonprofit organization facing significant funding cuts for several years, I know it can be done. We managed to not only keep the organization afloat, but to expand services in times of funding contraction. The city can do the same.

Besides budgetary efficiencies, I believe improved representation and inclusion of the diverse populations in Salida as an opportunity to build a stronger community. We all live here. There are a lot of different populations in this town - multi-generational families and new transplants, business owners and workers, short term rental owners and housing insecure. There are populations that are segregated from the Salida that is visible - unhoused people, older adults, people with disabilities, people with mental health and substance use struggles. The perspective and input of each of those groups and many more are all threads in the fabric of this community, and they are all equally valuable. I intend to ensure that all these voices are represented and considered with equal weight in community conversations and decision making, building a Salida that works for all Salidans.

Community partnerships are the key to making the most of the city’s opportunities. City government doesn’t have to do it all alone. We have an incredible bench of nonprofits, service providers, businesses, and individuals who are experts in how to approach our city’s opportunities. I want to foster public private partnerships with these folks to identify efficiencies and ways to collaborate to lighten the load on city departments and engage these talented people effectively. Community partners are also the key to soliciting the perspectives and insights from residents who may not otherwise have access to city officials.

I’m really excited for the privilege to represent Ward 2 residents and Salidans in general in City Council. We have so much potential and opportunity as a community, and I am eager to foster the partnerships and representation that it will take to make Salida the best it can be. 

Thanks for reading, looking forward to getting to know you better!