Newtown Board of Education Vice Chair Rebekah Harriman-Stites has announced her intention to run for Connecticut's 106th State Legislative District representing Newtown.The Newtown Bee, Ms Harriman-Stites will be seeking the local Democratic nomination as she sets her sights on the November 6 election.For more information, visit rebekahfornewtown.com or contact Clinton DePaolo via e-mail at depaolocli@gmail.com to schedule a meet and greet with Ms Harriman-Stites.

According to a campaign announcement provided to 

Already a successful business owner and active community organizer, Ms Harriman-Stites said she plans to show voters that she has the hands-on experience to influence bipartisan colleagues in Hartford with strategic, fiscally responsible, and innovative representation to move Newtown and all of Connecticut forward.

She was elected to the Newtown Board of Education in 2015 and also currently serves as chair of the Policy Committee and as a member of the District Safety and Security Committee. In 2010, she co-founded her business, HK Consulting Group, a boutique fund development firm, which helps in building capacity for nonprofit organizations and municipalities.

Ms Harriman-Stites has enjoyed great success researching and writing grants, which have secured more than $35 million in funding for clients.

Regarding her statehouse aspirations, she acknowledges the many challenges the state is facing.

"Connecticut's fiscal crisis didn't happen overnight, and it didn't happen in a vacuum," Ms Harriman-Stites commented in the release. "Hartford is derailed. Connecticut is broken, but we can fix it. Now is not the time for the blame game. I'm ready to listen, learn, and share what I know [with hopes of implementing] innovative approaches and commonalities to move our town and state forward."

Ms Harriman-Stites said she possesses a variety of skills to get Newtown across the finish line when it comes to things like education funding reform, special education reform to ease taxpayer burden, and securing funding to promote a healthy, safe, vibrant community.

If successful, Ms Harriman-Stites pledges to "listen, learn, and work with all to promote fiscal responsibility without sacrificing services - especially to our most vulnerable populations."

Fairfield County Business Journal as a top "40 Under 40" business leader.

Ms Harriman-Stites has a degree in social work from Central Connecticut State University and is a graduate of Leadership Greater Bridgeport where she served as chair of its board of directors. In 2010, she was recognized by the 

She was a founding member of My Sandy Hook Family Fund, helping successfully raise and distribute $1.5 million directly to the Sandy Hook School families affected by the tragedy of 12/14. She previously served as president of the Middle Gate School PTA, and was on the board of directors of EverWonder Children's Museum.

Ms Harriman-Stites is the proud mom of 12-year-old Fisher, and she and her husband, Chris Stites, have called Newtown home for more than 15 years. They can often be found on the sidelines at youth wrestling tournaments and lacrosse games.

As she moves forward with her campaign for the 106th District, currently represented by incumbent Republican Mitch Bolinsky, Ms Harriman-Stites reminds residents, "I'm a doer, I get things done, and it's time to make sure Newtown's voice is heard in Hartford - bills get passed, funds researched, requested, distributed equivocally.

"We work hard for our money, for our families, for our community," she added. "I want to make Hartford recognize that and get to work for us. I turn ideas into action, and action into results. It's what I do."