Hello Friends,
April 1st has come and gone. And if you are a regular reader here at The River, you may have remembered that I was running for village trustee for the first time.
My first election.
I will share a quick recap of how I got into this... I already am on a few committees with the village government. I decided to attend the monthly board meetings last year, because I started to hear rumblings about some issues that really bothered me. After attending the village board meetings, I decided that if I wanted to change things, I would need to get involved in our local government.
One of the rumblings that really had me concerned was de-funding our police department. That really bothered me. We raised our family here in the village. Our boys could ride their bikes up and down the street, stop at the local park and I did not worry. Why?
We had a village chief of police who knew the kids of the village and looked out for them. A side story here, one of our deputies retired, we recently bumped into him at a local function. He asked us what our boys are up to now after they flew the nest. He said, I just loved watching them ride their bikes and playing with friends.
When I heard that current village board members wanted to de-fund our police, I decided to run in the spring election.
It all has been a learning process for me. I met with the village clerk to learn how I go about getting on the ballot. My neighbor nominated me, I completed all the paperwork and I was on the ballot.
We decided to send out postcards with a photo of me and our dog, Ernie. Ernie and I walk the streets daily, we thought that would be a good way to be recognized by those who do not know me.
Others know me as the "Flower Lady" with my fresh cut flower business.
I was running against well known Cameron people. When I say this, born and raised here for generations. That is not me, we moved here, we are transplants. (I have a lot of stories about that too, I have shared some here on the blog.)
I know you are saying "Come on Carla, get to the results, did you win?"
Jessica Larson 377 votes
Carla TePaske 297 votes
Randy Hill 361 votes
Dave Ebner 375 votes
I did not make it on the board.
The village clerk called me today, she congratulated me on how well I did for my first time in an election. She also shared that if any of the board members resign in the future the spot will go to me, election law.
She encouraged me to try again, she said you did really well for your first time.
Many friends and family reached out to me during the day on Wednesday. Giving me encouragement or a hug. I am thankful for that, because I did feel sad, I wanted to try to make a difference... shake it up. Hee Hee!
I am so thankful for all those who cheered me on and also encouraged me that I should give it another try. "You were so close and you have good ideas, keep in the fight."
But there was one text message that gave me "Happy Tears" ...
Good Morning Mom!! Proud of you for trying!
Love, Sam
Sam is our oldest son.
♥
Carla
You are such a great person with a big heart and wanting change in your little village. The numbers were very close. Obviously people recognized you and that you wanted to make a good change to the village. I am glad you will continue to go to the meetings and be involved anyway you can until the next election. You are taking this loss with such grace and hopefulness for the next election. Just was not meant to be this time. You got out there and campaigned and did your best. I love that Erine was your running mate lol!!!! Congrats on getting out there and trying hard to make a difference. Hugs. Kris
ReplyDeleteI'm proud of you too! You got a LOT of votes and for your first time running that's quite an achievement! You did GREAT!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to you for your campaign and being brave! It shows how much you care about others and your community. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your election story! I'm sorry that you did not win but am proud of you for going for it. The race was close! How could anyone in a small town want to de-fund the police? What on earth?? Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteWell done! You were fighting an uphill battle, going against incumbents. You should try again, and I'm glad the clerk encouraged you!
ReplyDeleteWow! Thank you for sharing this. I am so impressed that you tried for it and you really did come close for a first time candidate for the board. Potential defunding of the police is an important issue and hopefully your candidacy and platform got some people thinking and talking about it. Congratulations for getting involved and giving it your best.
ReplyDeleteFunny story, a couple years ago my hubby was talked into running as a write-in for county sheriff. He had never run for any office and has no law enforcement experience. But there was no Republican candidate for sheriff, so he agreed to run as a write-in, but he said he would not advertise. Word of mouth got him on the ballot as the Republican candidate in the primary. The former sheriff called him to offer support should he win, but assured him he wouldn't win as our county has two university towns which always go Democrat. In the general election he didn't win, just as the former sheriff predicted, but he got thousands of votes as the only Republican choice. We are older than you by quite a bit and wouldn't seriously consider a run for office, but this experience did leave us wondering if he would have won if he had advertising and signs!
You would certainly have got my vote Carla. I'm sure you are disappointed but you did do well for your first time. Don't give up :)
ReplyDeleteNo idea why I'm coming up as anonymous. Wendy
ReplyDeleteOh I’m so proud of you! You did very well indeed and I hope you will run again. I agree, that people seeing you out and about with Ernie will have people notice you more and hopefully engage with you. I’m glad you made a stand. So many would rather leave it to others to fix.
ReplyDeleteWow, good for you! I too am proud of you, you did very well for first time running.
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry! You would have been such a wonderful proponent and fighter for the police. But wow, you still really did good! Don't give run the next time!!
ReplyDeleteOh darn. I sure was rooting for you to win. Maybe next time. Janice PS the pic of you and Ernie was adorable.
ReplyDelete((HUGS)) You gave it a good try and I think you should try again when you have the opportunity. That was so sweet of Sam to text you. Take care.
ReplyDeleteYour first round was impressive. Keep trying!
ReplyDeleteLoved the story of the deputy who knew your boys.
Oh, they should have picked you. But, as the others say: Try again! Lots of people try repeatedly, and each time get a little closer until they win. And you'll become more and more well-known. :)
ReplyDeleteGood for you for trying. Looks like you did well for your first time running, and maybe someone will resign.
ReplyDeleteI think it was so good you tried, don't be put off, please try again when the opportunity arises.
ReplyDeleteAll the best Jan