If the COVID-19 pandemic has shown us anything, it has shown us the massive gaps in healthcare service all across the United States and even across our surrounding communities. Pontiac cannot be a healthy city with a future without healthy people. We need to begin investing in better health infrastructure. We need to invest in solving the opioid crisis that has continuously impacted large portions of our country, including Pontiac. In addition to being a healthy city, Pontiac should be a safe city. Our city has the potential to provide for its residents. Evidence has shown us that things like community recreation and after school programs, volunteer opportunities, and even improvements in community “anchor points” like parks, libraries, and community centers can reduce both violent and property crime. This shows that we are stronger when we can come together, and we should be working to do that as often as possible.

As your Pontiac City Councilperson I will fight to:

• Invest in a caring economy that ensures all residents, including undocumented immigrants, have access to family, child, long-term, and disability care.
• Ensure comprehensive mental health services that support our residents to thrive.
• Strengthen protections for our city’s migrant residents and fight for service and support programs like legal representation, language access and municipal voting rights for resident immigrants.
• Promote better community solutions to the opioid crisis by collaborating with nonprofit organizations to provide free Narcan training courses and regularly scheduled prescription disposal days.
• Increase the number of community health clinics and accessible COVID-19 testing and vaccination sites.
• Improve Pontiac’s sense of community by renovating our local library and providing accessible transportation to the local community center.