Candidate for
Council Member; City of Oakley

I was born at the Martinez Community Hospital in 1959 and other than a few of my high school years spent in Clovis, I have called Oakley my home for 25 years.

I love the outdoors and decided early on I wanted to make a living working with my hands. Following the tradition my grandfather and uncles started, I served an apprenticeship in the Carpenters Union Local 152, from 1978 to 1982. Today I own a local General Contracting company that employs 4 employees, something I am very proud of, especially considering the tough economic times we are all facing.

I met my wife Janet Armstrong in 1973 and we were married in 1978. We have two children, Stephanie & Lindsey. Janet has been employed by Chevron for 29 years and is very involved in our contracting business. She is the Executive Director of the Stephanie Marie Frazier Memorial Foundation and is a Board Member of Our Healing Hearts, who offers support to mothers who have lost children. She was also chosen by California State Senator Tom Torlakson as his "2007 Woman of the Year" and also awarded the "2006 Woman of Distinction Award" by the Soroptimist International of the Delta.

On December 16th, 2000, my daughters were involved in a head on collision due to black ice on Highway 50 near Ice House Road in El Dorado County. Our oldest daughter Stephanie (who was 20) died in the accident and Lindsey was in critical condition for almost two weeks at Sutter Roseville. Lindsey recovered from her injuries and graduated from Freedom High School in 2001. She went on to graduate from UC Davis with a Bachelors Degree in Psychology and is now in graduate school studying to be a Clinical Psychologist.

I was obviously grief stricken, but felt compelled to try and prevent other families from experiencing our pain. After doing research I found out there had been 143 accidents in 14 years on that 2 mile stretch of Highway 50 with many fatalities from crossing over the centerline. I hired my own highway Safety Engineer and he gave us his recommendations. I then contacted our California State Senator Tom Torlakson, who set up a meeting with Will Kempton, the Director of Caltrans. As a result, Caltrans removed a lane to widen the median (to give drivers more reaction time) and installed a new pavement called Verglimit, which helps prevent black ice.

Since the safety improvements have been installed, there hasn't been a cross over fatality. Janet & I receive bi-annual reports detailing the number of accidents on Highway 50, to make sure the safety measures that were installed remain effective.

California State Senator Dave Cox introduced legislation on our behalf to name the stretch of Highway 50 that caused us and others so much pain, but also allowed us to be of service to others, The Stephanie Marie Frazier Memorial Highway.

I am the co-founder of a local non-profit organization (Stephanie Marie Frazier Memorial Foundation). Our program, The Network of Care provides packages of food and delivers them to families of hospitalized children. We are currently serving 36 hospitals including several children's hospitals, community and county hospitals in several counties throughout California as well as The Children's Hospital in Denver, Colorado. In 2005, our program was honored with the Bay Area Jefferson Award for Public Service. Our foundation has provided meals to over 30,000 families in 4 years.

I am also the co-founder of a local non-profit organization called the Friends of Oakley Community Foundation which provides services to families in need. This organization was founded to provide community leadership, including resources and convening organizations to solve problems.

My wife and I have partnered with the Special Kids Foundation to provide a barrier free "all abilities" playground for over 5,000 children in East Contra Costa County at the YMCA in Oakley. We are also moving forward to provide several other services to special kids and their families at the Oakley YMCA facility.

In March 2007, I was appointed to the Oakley Planning Commission and currently serve as Vice Chair. [image 1] Oakley is a young city and after years of public feedback we are setting the stage to create a City Center (downtown specific plan) that will provide a much needed tax base and create a core for Oakley that will include our City Hall, restaurants, and pedestrian friendly walkways. This project, essentially creating a new "Main Street", involves coordination with many state and local agencies and local business owners. Progress is underway, but we will need continued focus and persistence to see this project through. I really enjoy helping shape Oakley's future, working with the public and our City Council on this crucial project. I am also a member of the Oakley Chamber of Commerce to help local businesses prosper.

I also serve on the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CAC) advising the authority on transportation needs. I have been recently attending TransPlan (East Contra Costa County Transportation) meetings. I was asked to serve on the Vasco Road Safety Task Force by Senator Tom Torlakson, to support efforts of local agencies to provide funding for safety improvements.

My experience as a small business owner has taught me how to manage people and budgets. My time spent as a community organizer has inspired me to bring people and organizations together, to get things done. As a Planning Commissioner, I have been intimately involved with government processes, from beginning to end. I have attended every Oakley City Council meeting for the last 1 ½ years and understand all the inner workings of our city. I have an excellent working relationship with all department managers and when elected I can hit the ground running.

At the end of the day, all these experiences have helped me realize that I truly enjoy helping others.

I know I can have a greater impact in the lives of Oakley residents as a City Council Member and look forward to meeting as many residents as possible before Election Day.