-     Veterans' Affairs: No veteran should be homeless, anywhere, ever!  A solution: invest in repurposing unused schools to be temporary or long-term veterans' quarters. 

- Affordability: The $7.25 minimum wage is ludicrous!  That's a whopping $290 a week...before taxes.  Go ahead: try to feed, clothe, and shelter a family on that.  We need a realistic, living minimum wage across the Commonwealth.

- Human trafficking: Pennsylvania is in the top 10 states in the nation for human trafficking cases.  We're fighting it, but the traffickers are still in business.  About 85% of human trafficking is sex trafficking, and worldwide it's overtaking drug trafficking and illegal arms sales as a moneymaker for criminal cartels.  The reason is simple but disgustingly obvious: you can sell a bag of cocaine or a grenade launcher once.  You can sell a child 10 times a day.  This must stop, and we must help stop this horror. 

- Housing: there's a housing shortage in this country, including Pennsylvania.  We should increase the amount of housing available by rehabilitating older and abandoned buildings,  as well as promoting new construction.  Public-private partnerships with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity would be a good place to start.

- Healthcare: we must make it about health and care again.  It should be managed by doctors and nurses for patients, not by insurance companies for insurance companies.  

- Women's health: a woman's right to choose should be a medical discussion between a patient and her doctor.  No one in Harrisburg or Washington should tell you what to do with your body! 

- Substance Abuse: we must realize substance abuse is a disease, and treat it as such. Every Pennsylvania county should have treatment courts.

I'm a mother and grandmother who has raised a large family in the Poconos, and is raising three grandchildren in the wake of their mother's death.  I come from a family that has participated in the military and law enforcement in depth: my father was a decorated career U.S. Army NCO who saw combat in North Africa, Italy, France, and Korea.  All of my brothers served in the Marine Corps or the Army. One of my sons served in the Army. Two of my sons are law enforcement officers. Three of my nephews and one of my brothers are current or retired law enforcement officers. My husband is a retired U.S. Air Force officer.  Along with all of them, I believe we owe our veterans a country that values their post-service lives as much as they value our country's freedom. I have five children, 15 grandchildren, a great-grandson and another on the way, so as with all of us, I have a lot at stake.  And I recognize two important things: 1) I'm an underdog.  I've just walked into Spring Training and asked the Yankees for a tryout.  2) All of us together are smarter than any one of us.  If you elect me your Senator, I'll start by acknowledging I don't have all the answers, but I will listen so I have the benefit of your knowledge.

This website is a work in progress.  Stay tuned for updates, and thank you for your support!

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