Newtown resident Rebekah Harriman-Stites has announced her candidacy for Connecticut’s 106th State Legislative District representing Newtown.

Ms Harriman-Stites will be seeking the Democratic nomination for the statehouse seat she sought in 2018 when she was outpaced by incumbent Republican Rep Mitch Bolinsky.

According to a campaign announcement submitted to The Newtown Bee on February 12, Ms Harriman-Stites is a successful business owner, fundraising professional, non-profit advocate, community organizer, Newtown Board of Education member, and wrestling mom

She believes she has the hands-on experience to influence bipartisan colleagues in Hartford with strategic, fiscally responsible, innovative representation to move Newtown forward for all residents.

Ms Harriman-Stites has held many leadership roles on the Newtown Board of Education since having been elected in 2015 and re-elected in 2019 by an overwhelming majority. She served as vice chair of the board, chair of the Policy Committee, and as a member of the District Safety and Security Committee.

The candidate said she has redesigned how Newtown approaches and funds special education to better help all students succeed, support families and educators in reaching their goals, and reduce the burden on Newtown taxpayers.

With her years of volunteering diligently in Newtown, coupled with her tenure on the Newtown Board of Education, Ms Harriman-Stites said she recognizes several concerns brought up again and again by colleagues, friends, and neighbors, and is setting her sights on Hartford to help create viable solutions such as:

*Fostering appropriate economic development to ease tax burden on residents

*Recruiting business opportunities to fill empty commercial real estate

*Preserving Newtown’s quality of life and rural environment

*Introducing effective tax cuts and incentives for seniors

*Creating statewide small business support and initiatives

*Introducing acceptable, affordable housing for seniors and first-time homeowners

*Revamping and overhauling property tax reform

*Advocating for strong schools and academic opportunities for all students

*Supporting and securing Connecticut’s smart, strong gun violence prevention legislation

Preserving Newtown’s Character

“With effective leadership and creative solutions, the future can indeed be bright,” Ms Harriman-Stites asserts. “Together, let’s move forward, and work together with concrete, strategic action.

“First and foremost: economic development and incentives that ease the tax burden of Newtown residents, while taking full responsibility of what we owe both our seniors and children,” she added. “We can do this while preserving the character of the town we all love. It’s not an either/or situation, despite what rhetoric we hear. We can do both.”

Due to the groundswell of encouragement and support from Newtown that brought her so close to winning in 2018, Ms Harriman-Stites said she is excited and encouraged to again offer voters a smart, effective voice for the 106th State Legislative District in Newtown.

Ms Harriman-Stites states that she is the proud mom to 14-year-old son, Fisher, and the daughter of Lucy Harriman, both of whom encouraged her to enter the race. The candidate has called Newtown home for nearly 20 years, yet recognizes she is still a newcomer to many neighbors.

In 2019, Ms Harriman-Stites sold her business, HK Consulting Group, a boutique fund development firm that raised critical financial support for major nonprofit organizations and municipalities throughout Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts, securing more than $35 million in funding for clients.

She reports that she now uses her collaborative approach to networking, fundraising, and leadership as Director of Development for Ann’s Place Danbury, “a Connecticut treasure” that offers free cancer support services to both Connecticut and nearby New York residents.

Background And Qualifications

Ms Harriman-Stites holds a degree in social work from Central Connecticut State University and is a graduate of Leadership Greater Bridgeport, for which she served as chair of the Board of Directors.

She was a founding member of My Sandy Hook Family Fund, successfully raising and distributing $1.5 million directly to the Sandy Hook School families affected; has previously served as president of the Middle Gate School PTA; and is on the Board of Directors of Everwonder Children’s Museum.

“It’s time to put Hartford to work for Newtown, and to bring concrete ideas and strategic plans to build budgets that support our town while not sacrificing our vulnerable friends and neighbors. It’s not either/or — it’s both,” she said. “With an open mind, and the brains and elbow grease to get the job done, I’m ready to get to work. I turn ideas into action, and action into results. It’s what I do every day at Ann’s Place, in the community, and with enough votes, for all of Newtown in Hartford.”

For more information visit rebekahfornewtown.com. Ms Harriman-Stites invites potential constituents to e-mail campaign@rebekahfornewtown2020.com to schedule face-to-face time and encourages residents to “ask the tough questions” she will face during the campaign, and if she is elected to Newtown’s statehouse seat come November.