I’m a Ward 9 resident (48 W. Chestnut St.) and newcomer to Kingston politics, and proud to call myself both.

I was born and raised in Decatur, Ga. (just outside Atlanta), and graduated from Marist High School, before starting my gradual life migration north to Kingston.  Key stops along the way:

• Duke University, where I graduated in the Class of 1984. (Sadly, I was at Duke during the 4 most dismal years of the Blue Devils’ basketball history — but remain a dedicated fan.)
• An early career in North Carolina as an investigative reporter for 2 daily newspapers, covering the workings and behind-the-scenes maneuverings of various local governments — an experience that will give me a unique ability to report back and explain to Ward 9 residents the various issues — big and small — that come before the Common Council, and how you can effectively make your opinions known in the process.
• The University of Virginia, where I earned an MBA degree in 1992 after deciding I wanted to move from the editorial side of the publishing business to the business side.
• New York, where I worked as an executive at HBO, developing pay-TV services in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East; at Price Waterhouse, where I was a strategy and business-development consultant to the firm’s media and entertainment clients; and at TENNIS Magazine and TENNIS.com where I was a publisher and in charge of marketing and major sales efforts. (My favorite current player: Novak Djokovic. My favorite player of all time — and occasional colleague: Billie Jean King.)

Here in Kingston, I work — mostly from home — as a marketing consultant to a number of businesses, big and small, in the media and sports industries, drawing on a set of skills and experiences that I think are applicable to helping market Kingston, not just to new residents but to businesses.

Outside work, I am active in a number of community groups, including Friends of Historic Kingston and UPAC, whose boards I sit on, and the Queens Galley Soup kitchen.

I’m 47 and single.

Having moved to Kingston 5 years ago from New York City, I am occasionally asked whether I encounter much resistance to my candidacy as a “new” arrival. The answer: No.

Ward 9 residents, like all concerned citizens of Kingston, realize that this, our hometown — by birth or by choice — is at a critical moment in its long and rich history, and that in order to get it back on a healthy, thriving path, we need to tap new energy, new perspectives, ”new blood” for our political leadership. I think I bring all of those to the Common Council table, and look forward to convincing you of the same.

Being a “newcomer” to Kingston means seeing this wonderful place with unjaded eyes; seeing it for its extraordinary history and potential, not just its problems.

And being a newcomer to Kingston politics means being able to approach all players, across party lines, with an outstretched hand and an open mind, not bound by old feuds and bad habits.

I may not have been lucky enough to be born and raised in Kingston, but at least give me credit for being smart enough to find it and to make it my home!