Address: 79 Western Ave.

Occupation: Maine licensed physician and public health volunteer; clinical associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology, University of Illinois College of Medicine, member College Student Promotions Committee (deals with advancement of all students on all four campuses: Chicago, Peoria, Rockford and Urbana). The University of Illinois is the third largest medical school in the nation with 1,283 students enrolled 2019 to 2020.

Education: BS University of Illinois, Urbana; MD University of Illinois, Chicago; Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency, Ohio State University, Master of Public Health, University of Illinois, Springfield

Political history (boards, committees): Peoria City/County Board of Health, member, secretary, and president of the board

Organizations/Clubs: Former chairman of the Fund Raising Committee, The Peoria Symphony Orchestra. Former Assistant Dean for Clinical Education, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria

Considering the position you are running for, what do you feel are the three most pressing issues?

Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Community School District (BBHCSD) stands at a crossroads. We are facing several issues from falling enrollment to aging of the physical plant where our communities’ children are educated. Over the course of quite a few years the board and committee have sought the advice of the community as well as many experts in the field. Engineers have pointed out the failings in the buildings and architects have indicated what it would take to fix them. Educators and administrators within the school have indicated the positives of embracing a new campus approach to the project as a way to address stabilization of enrollment and potential expansion of educational activities. It is clear to me even as a new member of the area that the community supports the advancement of the school. The BBHCSD is a vital element of our area.

To advance the project, community businessmen and philanthropist have stepped up and to their credit have said they would help. As an individual from Chicago and Peoria, Illinois I am well acquainted with this partnership which has allowed public schools to grow and expand their educational offerings. The offer by Mr. Coulombe to form a group to raise funds for the money needed to make the master plan shovel ready is important in that it will establish a core group for fund raising not only for this project but into the future.

I commend my opponent in this race for the time and effort he has put into getting the project moving along. My reason for running is that I feel I have some unique experience which will help carry this project forward. My work on a public board such as the Department of Public Health which receives a good portion of its funding from taxpayer dollars and is responsible to the public as to how those dollars are spent has made me a good steward of the communities’ resources. I am experienced in forming relationships with alternate funding resources be it private individuals, grants, or corporate gifts to aid in funding community endeavors. Bringing all stakeholders to the table has been an essential part of what I have done in the past.

Finally, I am very grateful for the warm way the community has greeted my family as year-round residents to Boothbay Harbor. Volunteering as a physician vaccinator at the Boothbay-Boothbay Harbor Vaccination Clinic has given me the opportunity to meet many of the wonderful people who live and work here. It would be a privilege to give back to such a fine community. I would like to say thank you and seek your support.