Why I want to Serve

A street scene with a statue of a man wearing a hat, blooming flowers in the foreground, a clock on a pole, palm trees, storefronts, and a blue sky.

I’M NOT RUNNING TO JOIN THE CLUB.

You’ve seen it happen.

Candidates promise to listen, ask tough questions, and think independently. Then they get elected, and suddenly everyone seems to vote the same way.

And you start wondering:

Was anyone really listening?

Or was the decision already made?

I wonder that, too.

I’m running for City Council for one reason: to represent you.

Because the decisions made around that table don’t stay around that table.

They show up on the street you drive home on. In the traffic you sit in. In your water bill. In the

safety and privacy of your neighborhood. In what gets built next door.

And someday, they may help determine whether your children and grandchildren can still afford

to call Camarillo home.

That’s why listening isn’t enough.

I’ll do the homework. I’ll ask the question nobody has asked yet. I’ll examine the alternatives.

And I’ll explain how I reached my decision.

If I don’t know the answer, I’ll tell you.

Then I’ll find it and report back.

And here’s something else you should know about me:

Being independent doesn’t mean always being the person who says no.

If someone else has the better idea, I’ll say so.

If working together produces the best result for Camarillo, I’ll work with anyone.

But collaboration does not mean conformity.

Because someday an important vote will come.

The discussion will end.

The room will get quiet.

Every other hand may go up.

And if I’ve listened to you, done the homework, examined the alternatives, and believe that

decision puts the Camarillo we love at risk...

mine stays down.

Not to make a point.

Not to pick a fight.

To protect the community that sent me there.

That’s the difference between joining the club and representing Camarillo.

I WILL LISTEN.

I WILL DO THE HOMEWORK.

AND I WILL STAND UP FOR CAMARILLO, EVEN IF I HAVE TO STAND ALONE.