1. Glendora's Strategic Plan emphasizes preserving the city's sense of community values while planning for changes including housing needs, state requirements, economic conditions, and changing demographics.
a) What do you believe defines Glendora's character?
I've lived here over 50 years, and to be honest, I don't believe I fully appreciated how unique Glendora's character is until deciding to run for office. I began by informally surveying residents, asking 'What's your favorite thing about your neighborhood?' Most say the same things: 'Neighbors are supportive & friendly' 'People know each other's names' 'Quiet, safe, great place to raise kids.' I was especially surprised when a resident who’s lived here for a few years commented on the fact that people stay put, that there are multi-generational Glendora families. He said this made for a deeply rooted sense of community. I’m a member of a multi-generational Glendora family. While I’ve always been consciously grateful to be part of a large extended family with cousins living close by, I wasn't as aware that it was our connection to Glendora, our rootedness in this town, that provided part of our family glue. What defines Glendora's valued character? Friendliness, neighbors that know and support one another, safe streets, parks and public spaces where kids play and adults enjoy each other's company, and a deep rootedness and connection that binds us all together. These are Glendora's small-town values.
b) How should the city balance preserving what residents value about Glendora with planning for such changes?
It’s not just possible but necessary to pursue strategic housing development and transportation plans to retain Glendora's character and small-town feel. My husband and I bought our first Glendora home in 1986. Since then, we’ve seen the value of our home increase to the point where we could no longer afford to buy one. My adult children, let alone my grandchildren, cannot afford the current median price of a Glendora home. In the next 10 years or so, my husband and I will be looking to downsize. However, our current mortgage payment is less than the rent for a two-bedroom Glendora apartment. My point is Glendora is in danger of losing multi-generational families and residents unless we provide more affordable housing for young people, families, and seniors. Of course, this development must proceed with significant and ongoing engagement with residents in the surrounding neighborhoods. There should also be a range of housing options with clear standards for parking, traffic, and public safety. If we value safe walkable streets and spaces where kids play and adults hang out, we should support the People Movement Plan. Some complain that the plan limits the ease and speed with which people can drive through the Village and Foothill Blvd. But let’s remember, you rarely learn folk’s names while driving past them at 25-40 mph.
2. Glendora includes residents of different backgrounds, ages, family structures, and life experiences.
a) What does it mean to you for Glendora to be a welcoming community?
In 2018, I worked with residents and local college students to found Welcome to Glendora. Our goal was to provide information about SB 54 (now the California Value Act), current immigration policies and practices, and the lived experience of DACA recipients and their families. As a Glendoran, I also wanted to make sure my town was known as a welcoming community. Around that the same time, my husband and I began hosting asylum seekers in our home. I’ve come to realize that being a welcoming home or community means more than simply offering hospitality and a place to stay; it means recognizing that you and yours are better off for having done so. As I said, I’m part of a big family, and it continues to grow through marriage, loving partnerships and new births. Adding members to a family changes the social dynamic, and change is always hard. But I suspect people who have navigated these changes wisely and graciously would say their families are incredibly richer because of these additional members. The same is true for communities.
b) What role, if any, should the City Council play in making sure residents are heard, treated fairly, and able to participate in civic life?
Making sure residents are heard is a council member’s most important job. Residents must know the City listens to them when making important decisions. City staff do a good job of updating residents through public meetings, its website and direct mailers. But let’s face it, most residents are too busy managing jobs, families, and everyday life activities to take advantage of these efforts. There is still a communication gap, and it is the job of a council member to bridge it. When elected, I will continue knocking on doors and build on trusting neighborly relations to ensure resident’s voices are heard. In addition to creating small neighborhood groups that I meet with regularly, I will work with fellow council members, city staff, business owners, and regional partners to make sure everyone, particularly those with whom I might disagree, has a seat at the table. The problems we are facing are too complicated and the decisions too important to let our differences divide us. We must leverage differing perspectives and life experiences to come up with creative, viable solutions. As the District 1 representative, I cannot promise to give everyone exactly what they want, but I promise that I will work hard to arrive at solutions we can all live with.
3. Many of the challenges facing Glendora extend beyond city boundaries and involve the broader San Gabriel Valley.
a) What issues do you think would benefit most from regional cooperation?
While Glendora’s character may be unique, the challenges it's facing—homelessness, lack of affordable housing, declining infrastructure, unfunded state mandated city actions—are not. To effectively address these challenges, Glendora council members must work closely and collaboratively with other city colleagues through partnerships such as the San Gabriel Valley Council of Government and Southern California Association of Governments. By working together, we can learn from the successes and failures of various attempts to address these issues, we are more likely to get additional state and national funding, and we’re better able to push for legislation that grants cities local control over how funds are used.
b) How would you work with neighboring cities and regional government bodies to address them?
Three words: cooperation, integrity, and humility. As a newly elected official, I’ll need to come up to speed on inter-city and inter-regional efforts to address our common interests and issues. However, I’ve already met with several representatives in adjacent cities, and they are willing to work with me and tutor me on being an effective team player. To work effectively and collaboratively, those involved must trust one another and know that they will be treated honestly and with respect. This is not to say there is no room for disagreement and the stating of hard truths. Constructive collaboration must make room for dissent. But each member must be recognized as someone capable of making a unique contribution in understanding and solving the problem at hand. Hence, the need for humility. As a council member, one must resist the temptation to be or be seen as the smartest person in the room. We must resist the temptation to view ourselves and allow others to view us as a superhero, the only one capable of solving the City’s problems. We must remember that even Captain America recognized he needed the entire Avengers to save the day.
4. What experience, qualifications, or perspective would you bring to the City Council?
I’ve lived in Glendora for 56 years. I say this not because it means that my voice or opinion matters more. For whether someone has lived here 50 years or 5 minutes, they have equal say and responsibility for what happens in our town. I say it because I’ve witnessed Glendora go through many seasons, and some of the problems we are facing are good ones. In the late 1990s/early 2000s, many worried the Village was becoming a ghost town. Now we complain we cannot find parking. This is not to say inadequate parking isn’t a problem, but it does mean that we are beginning to see a revitalization of our economic corridors and public spaces. As a long-time Glendora resident, I also know that for too long a few people with outsized funding and egos have been allowed to dominate what should be a community-wide conversation. We need a District 1 representative with the skills and commitment to ensure all residents have a seat at the decision-making table, not only those with enough time or connections to get a seat on their own. In 2023, I co-founded Glendora Together, a multigenerational group dedicated to hosting events that encourage thoughtful dialogue and collaborative problem solving. We have hosted forums with resident panelists of all ages discussing homelessness, immigration, and investing in public spaces. As a department chair and professor at Azusa Pacific University, I was responsible for hiring faculty capable of enabling students to examine difficult problems and evaluate different solutions. I worked with staff, faculty, and administrators to develop a program satisfying various interests and a balanced budget. I have co-managed a family-owned manufacturing company, raised four sons while completing my PhD, and watched my husband build a construction company from the ground up. I know the persistence, collaboration and creative problem-solving it takes to meet multiple needs with limited resources, and I am up for the job.