06/02/2026
I have spent the last 24 hours trying to process what happened in Sandy yesterday. I've felt everything from shock and sadness to anger.
First and foremost, my deepest condolences go out to the families, friends, first responders, and everyone affected by this tragedy.
The shock and sadness are easy to understand. Innocent people lost their lives. Others were injured. Families will never be the same.
My anger comes from asking one simple question: Why?
Why did a criminal have access to a weapon? Why did someone who was clearly struggling have access to a weapon? How did this happen?
I have been an elected official for over five years. Sometimes events like this make all the good things we work so hard to accomplish feel insignificant. We spend countless hours debating policies, regulations, and political talking points, yet tragedies like this continue to happen.
Every day, law-abiding citizens see their rights restricted, but somehow we still cannot figure out how to keep weapons out of the hands of people who intend to commit evil acts. We continue to argue over politics while failing to address some of the root causes, including mental health and intervention before a crisis becomes a tragedy.
Who is failing society? Is it solely the person who commits the act? Is it leaders who refuse to address the underlying problems? Is it a system that reacts after lives are lost instead of preventing the loss in the first place?
I don't pretend to have all the answers. What I do know is that families are grieving today. Children are growing up without loved ones. Heroes are being praised because they were forced to respond to unimaginable circumstances.
How many more lives must be lost before we stop treating these tragedies as political talking points and start finding real solutions?
People sometimes ask why I get frustrated. This is why. Because too often it feels like those entrusted to lead are willing to argue about the problem instead of solving it.
As an elected official, I am ready to start having these conversations. I am ready to start working toward solutions. I am ready to say enough is enough and that something has to change.
The question is: who else in elected office is ready to stand up and be part of that change?
I am not a doctor. I am not a college graduate. What I am is someone with real-life experience who stepped up to serve because I believed our communities deserved better. I got involved because I was tired of watching people talk about problems while refusing to solve them.
We don't need more political talking points. We don't need more finger-pointing. We need leaders willing to sit down, have difficult conversations, and find real solutions that protect innocent people while addressing the issues that continue to put our communities at risk.
If you're an elected official, community leader, law enforcement officer, educator, mental health professional, then let's start the conversation. Let's stop waiting for the next tragedy to bring us together.
I don't care whether you're a Democrat, Republican, Independent, or politically unaffiliated. I care whether you're willing to help solve the problem. Because the families burying loved ones today don't care about party labels. They care that someone they love is gone.
How many more must die? How many more children must grow up without a parent, sibling, or friend? How many more heroes must be created through tragedy and bloodshed before we decide enough is enough?
Doing nothing is no longer acceptable.
Today, my thoughts and prayers remain with the victims, their families, the first responders, and everyone whose lives were changed forever. Tomorrow, we need to start demanding action.
I pray God has mercy on this state and brings real change.
