My parents brought me home from the hospital to their small home on Hiland Road. At the time it was the second house on the street, surrounded by nature. As a child I grew up in the local schools, Alpenglow, then Homestead when they switched all the Hiland kids to it, followed by Gruening and finally Eagle River High School. I still remember the town from all those years ago. Hiland was a dirt road, the Walmart was much smaller with a gas station in their parking lot, and the wonderful duck pond where I would always enjoy feeding the birds whenever my parents brought me into town to run errands. It was so different then and even now, it brings a smile to my face.

5 years ago, when I was only 23, I was introduced to community leadership and service through a group working to give Eagle River a fresh start, separate from Anchorage. I attended meetings to learn more about the project, and with my interest in city development, it was a smooth transition to being a Board Member of Eaglexit. I then joined my community council at Southfork which allowed me to represent us on Eagle River's Road Board and CERAB. My unique perspective has been instrumental to bridging gaps and uniting people despite political opinions. 

Today, Eagle River is a crossroads; we're more divided than ever as a community and are constantly pulled into unproductive political dichotomy. As a community, we owe it to ourselves to do better - not just for ourselves, but our neighbors and our future. As Eagle River's next State Senator, I promise to unite our divided community through our shared values for a new voice for Eagle River in Juneau. Together, we can work together to rise above any political rhetoric and create lasting change in quality education, safe communities, reeling in government spending, and government overreach.