My grandfather, Clifford Jacobson, was an Army veteran and the person who ignited my passion for civic engagement and love for Burnsville. My grandfather is the son of  German and Norwegian immigrants. He married Shirley George, the daughter of Lebanese immigrants. Together, they moved to Burnsville and were one of the first settlers and the original homeowners of my childhood home in North River Hills. To support their family, my grandfather was a proud IRS agent and my grandmother provided in-home child care. Their dedication to our family taught me the importance of hard work and the power of unconditional love.

In addition to teaching me how to bowl and play cribbage, the greatest gifts my grandpa gave me were a copy of the Constitution, a book of landmark Supreme Court decisions, and countless hours of conversation on how America operationalized its ideals throughout history. 

I fell in love with the United States Constitution when I learned about our civil liberties and fundamental rights to free speech, the ability to participate in the democratic process, and to worship with dignity. These aren’t just values we strive for as Americans, they are innate freedoms instilled in us by the Creator and named in our country’s governing documents. 

My father, Oscar Gómez, was born in Honduras and has worked with Independent School District 191 for 30 years. While studying with my father for his citizenship exam in 2008 I realized our rights and liberties cannot be taken for granted. While some avoid politics out of discomfort, I recognize that American democracy depends on our ongoing understanding and engagement at all levels of government.

My mother, Theresa Gómez, was my very first teacher. The two most important life lessons she taught me are that ongoing commitment is part of being in community and that life is filled with group projects. Growing up in her childhood home in the North River Hills of Burnsville, I benefited from the investments made in our city’s infrastructure, safety, parks and natural resources.

My parents worked hard to send me to St. John the Baptist Catholic School in Savage and Cretin-Derham Hall in Saint Paul. My Catholic education shaped my values and instilled strong alignment with the Catholic Social Teachings. My mentors during these most critical developmental years of my life modeled incredible integrity and demonstrated how community is formed by doing small things with profound enthusiasm.

After high school, I earned a liberal arts degree in Religion and Political Science from Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, but my experience was anything but conventional. During my first semester of college, I was diagnosed with brain cancer. It was during those lonely nights in the hospital that I resolved to make the most out of the rest of my life. Within months of being cancer-free, I returned to Coe College as a full-time student and immediately began working as a campaign organizer to mobilize my community around local, state, and federal issues. My experience in Iowa taught me how to disagree with others while effectively working towards a shared vision for our community.

I love my current job as a policy associate! My work is centered on supporting cross-sector coalitions to advocate for data-driven policies that promote healthy pregnancies and improve the health, care, learning, and stability of families with young children.

I’ve learned that effective advocacy is not about winning one vote or passing one great policy––it’s about developing an ongoing relationship with decision-makers and building the awareness and ongoing capacity of communities to stay engaged and participate in democracy.

I believe that a policy is only as good as its implementation and it is all of our responsibilities to make sure that the children in our community are advocated for, at every level of government. At the local level, our City Council makes decisions that directly impact us. From infrastructure investments to the distribution of state and federal dollars, its critically important for communities to keep an eye on how our City Council is spending our hard-earned tax dollars.