I fully support the candidacy of Heidi Wilenius to represent us on the Hopewell Borough Council. I have watched Heidi for close to 10 years, from the time she first walked into my shop on Broad Street, and I have actually been hoping for many of those years that she would run for office. Why? She has always been public-minded and aware of important issues in our town. She is a true responsible citizen. I see her as caring deeply about people, about justice in the world, about fair governance. And I’ve seen her act time and again on her beliefs. Her energy for seeing the right thing through is nearly overwhelming. She won’t always agree with me or with anyone, and this is important. She is independent in her evaluations of situations, and she is careful, fair, and an articulate spokesperson in the end.
I believe the job of a council member is enormous and time-consuming. I am so grateful to the good people who are willing to take it on. Heidi’s dedication for doing work she cares about has been proven through her work chairing the Hopewell Harvest Fair for a good number of years, leading many girls in Girl Scouting, being a crucial spearhead in bringing about Downtown Hopewell, our merchant association that has been very effective in letting the wider community and visitors know what Hopewell has to offer. As a merchant who has never had the energy or cleverness to make such an effort on my own, I am amazed and grateful to Heidi as one of several people who are out there making things happen. In the larger world, I know Heidi has organized trips to Washington to add whatever she could to important issues: among them, she stood with mothers of people who had been killed by police brutality, and she managed to get 3 busloads of people from Hopewell to the Women’s March.
I trust Heidi to evaluate our needs and problems carefully, always with an eye to fairness, and to leave no stone unturned in searching for solutions. It’s about time all the good she does for us becomes official. Please join me in voting for her.
Bobbie Fishman
The Bear and the Books
Hopewell, New Jersey
