What in your background prepares you to represent the district in Congress?

as a fifth generation northwest Georgian, Berry alumna, 30-year activist, and two-term rome city commissioner, my roots in this community — and my commitment to serving this community — run deep. i know the people who live here. i’ve visited their living rooms and around their tables. and i know they deserve a representative who’s looking out for them.

it’s not just about the current congresswoman, who i believe actively puts our community at risk. northwest Georgians haven’t had a representative they could rely on in years. as a commissioner, i could never ignore my constituents the way our congresspeople have. i could never dismiss my neighbors’ problems or fall back on partisanship.

So, what prepares me to represent this district is that i’ve spent decades looking out for the people who live here, making sure their voices are heard, and delivering results that actually make their lives better.

at the age of 12, i moved into a children’s home because my parents couldn’t support me. Though my childhood wasn’t easy, i learned the values of perseverance, hard work, and to never back down to bullies. at the age of 18 i joined the military. during my time as an active duty member of the u.S. army, i learned to work alongside people of all backgrounds in support of a shared mission.

later in my career, i worked in compliance as a government contractor and government official. This taught me how to effectively make plans and negotiate. in this role, one of my primary responsibilities was to identify and combat fraud, waste, and abuse in government spending. in addition, i trained iraqi officials how to properly govern in their newly formed democracy. i have served this country for 27 years and i am ready to continue that service.

i am prepared to represent this district because i have lived the struggles faced by families in northwest Georgia. i have lived here most of my life and my family has been here for generations.

i’m a wife and a mother to two teenagers and we have battled the everyday problems our neighbors face — from childcare to affordable broadband, to veterans’ healthcare and addiction. We are a paycheck to paycheck family. When my son was young, my husband and i worked opposite shifts because we could not afford childcare. i come from a family of veterans. i have watched as they have struggled to access quality healthcare and mental health resources. My husband struggled with alcoholism a few years back, taking a toll on our entire family.

This is why i want to invest in affordable childcare, Veterans’ healthcare, and mental health and addiction services — to help families like mine.