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from Troy State University in Public Administration after my Communications degree. I worked for about 15 years in the hospital and the healthcare system doing their communications following tourism communications, so I have a little bit of experience in that area. It is not intended to be a flex, but I did get multiple – dozens and dozens of – state and national awards in communications, so I know that I am able to build systems because I have done it. It is one of the things that I feel like I could bring to the city.
I know that it is difficult to represent the voice of 10,710 citizens of the city of Vidalia, but I think there’s ways to push/pull communications. I was once a two-time president of the Georgia Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations, and one of the things that we did is we were a body of five who represented 147 healthcare systems across the state of Georgia – that’s a lot of information to pull in. So, we developed subcommittees – I think that is one of the opportunities we have within the city that we can develop those. These are things that I have done. Again, I think it builds a level of transparency and accountability that perhaps we need in the city.
I understand that it must be difficult to run a city – I understand that. But there have been things that I have been concerned with in the past four years. I was going to run in the 2019 election; however, my children were much smaller at that point. Now, there are things that I still see that are opportunities within the city.
We have not had financial [reports] in almost five months – I see that as problematic. I think there are opportunities in that. In the last report that I had, there were 11 police officers and 11 open positions for certified police officers within the city. We have a crime problem – we do. The only reason that we have two of those positions filled is because we hired two officers; we did have 13 open positions, but we hired those two officers fairly recently. I have heard countless times [about brown water]. I’m not impacted by brown water in the city of Vidalia, but I can throw a stone at the closest house [that is]. I know that it is a longterm problem, but I’d like to see a long-term solution to that. What does it look like in 20 years from now? I know that brown water is an issue; I have a kid that comes home from Sally D. Meadows Elementary School with a headache because he can’t drink the brown water while he’s at school, so I think that there’s lots of opportunities for change.
I have lots and lots of ideas. I’ve lived here forever. If you know me, you know I’m really energetic and ready to serve if you elect me to serve you.”
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most questions in questioning period, as she fielded inquiries on how to handle issues, such as crime, brown water, and lack of transparency. She explained that she does not have exact solutions for these issues, but believes that through communication and working together, the issues may be solved. She also shared that both she and her husband are small business owners who understand and champion the value of grants and other funding when attempting to complete projects.
Conclusion
The Toombs County Republican Party concluded the event with an open meet-and-greet, as candidates and attendees were able to mingle and further discuss any concerns and thoughts.
