APPETIZERS WITH ANDY!
WHERE: Old Chicago, 3550 S. Wadsworth, Lakewood, CO 80235
WHEN: Thursday, January 26th 6-8 pm
You are invited to an informal face to face conversation with Representative Andy Kerr.
Come have pizza and appetizers and share your thoughts with your state representative!
ANDY IS RUNNING FOR THE SENATE!
Here is a transcript of the remarks he gave at his announcement...
Thank you all for joining me here today. I especially want to thank Sen. Betty Boyd for her very kind introduction, and Lakewood Mayor Bob Murphy and City Councilmen Tom Quinn, & Adam Paul, and all of the people here today that give so much to our community.
I’d also like to thank my family for being here today, and their tireless support, love, and affection as we continue our wonderful journey together. Those of you who know my wife, Tammy, know her as a passionate advocate for education as a PTA president, mom of 3 kids, and teacher of teachers. I could not do what I do without you.
I chose to be here, at the Belmar Shopping District, because it shows how a thriving Jefferson County can look. At a time when our entire country has been struggling, Colorado has already found the answers to many of our problems. Our real challenge has been applying the solutions we found. The politics of our times have blocked the progress we could be making. The tone in Washington has pushed us apart, but the genius of Colorado has always been how, despite our fierce independence, we have come together to answer the challenges.
Belmar, filled with busy shoppers, shows this. Just a short time ago this corner of Wadsworth and Alameda looked very different, but even in what could have been a devastating time for economic growth, it grew. The business community, the City, the County and the State all worked together to create an environment where sensible development could occur. Not everything that was done here can be, or should be, repeated everywhere, but the same process that found the solutions unique to this place can be used anywhere. It was simply a matter of bringing all the stakeholders together and stepping beyond the politics to find what worked.
And that is why I chose this place today; because in many other places and times those words might seem hollow, but right here today you can look around and see that the results are very real. Leaders in Lakewood transformed this corner, and I think there are lessons here to help all corners of Colorado.
I have worked to learn from the lessons of Lakewood and Jefferson County for most of my life. I attended Westgate and Foothills Elementary Schools, Dunstan Junior High, and then Green Mountain High School. I got my degrees at Colorado schools, and I put them to work right back here as a teacher at Dunstan. Even now, when the legislature is not in session, I work for Jeffco Schools. I’ve lived here, I’ve learned here, and this is where I choose to raise my family.
Since 2006, I’ve had the incredible responsibility and privilege to serve as a voice for my neighbors in the State House of Representatives. I’m proud of my record in the House, where I sponsored legislation building good jobs for working families, improving our schools, protecting the environment, and making government smarter and more efficient.
Ever since the national economy slowed down, my top priority has been getting Colorado back to work. I’ve reached across the aisle to create incentives for rooftop wind turbines, to increase the number of Regional Tourism Projects, to track the business impact of proposed laws, and to make job retraining affordable for every Coloradan. I have sponsored legislation that launched a vibrant new boom in solar panel leasing, and propelled forward Colorado’s commitment to renewable energy.
I focused on growing jobs here that would stay here; laying the groundwork for Colorado’s New Energy Economy and its Knowledge Economy, and I protected the small and local businesses that are the real engines of our growth.
There’s still much more work to be done, but I know that I have so much more to contribute to my community. There is an opportunity this year for the right team to bring everyone to the table and get things done, and there is also a risk that if we don't, we will continue to see the same obstruction for the sake of politics that infects too many parts of our government.
I want to be where I can make the most difference, and there is no place in Colorado where the voice of Colorado can be so plainly heard as the new Senate District here in central Jefferson County. This region including Edgewater, Lakewood, Littleton and Ken Caryl shows the diversity of Colorado and is the very best example of how that diversity can be a strength.
That’s why I am announcing my candidacy for Jefferson County’s Senate District 22.
This district shows that together, we can get Colorado back to work. Together, we can continue Colorado’s innovation and commitment to a New Energy Economy. Together, we can craft the needed solutions that will benefit all of us.
Thank you for your support; it has inspired and sustained my belief in public service. With it, I hope to serve as one of Jefferson County’s most tireless voices in the Colorado State Senate.
Andy
VoteAndyKerr@gmail.com
Andykerr.org
720-979-4515