Our neighborhoods and streets must be safe and secure. Families must feel safe in their yards, churches and playgrounds. We must make this a priority. We cannot expect children to learn when they are fearful for their safety. We cannot expect parents to work at their jobs when they are concerned for their children’s well being. And our seniors, who have given us so much, should not live as prisoners in their own homes.

We must crack down on the illegal guns on our streets. Our street corners should not be drug markets and our children must not feel pressured to join gangs. We must put the resources into these areas so there are enough police in our community to get the job done.

As citizens of this Commonwealth, we should have the protection and services of the government. We should know that our property rights will be protected. We all worked too hard to purchase our homes to feel they can be easily in jeopardy. The government should be protecting these rights, not denying them.

When an individual makes a mistake, he or she must pay the price. We have a fair, honest and tough justice system and we support that. But when someone has paid his or her debt to society, comes back to their family, works to get a job and be a contributing member to society, our responsibility is to aid in that. We can start by restoring his or her voting rights automatically and I will work for that. When the debt is paid, everyone deserves a new slate.

I also want to increase the job opportunities in our district. We need good paying jobs so citizens can support themselves and their families. I want to see companies choose this area and I want to make sure that our residents have the training and skills for those jobs.