Reclaiming Freedom, Community, and Democracy in Pennsylvania’s 199th District

Every year around the Fourth of July, we hear a lot of big words.

Freedom. Patriotism. Liberty. Country.

Those words matter to me. They always have.

I grew up in Cumberland County. This is my home. My family has roots here. My faith was shaped here. My sense of service was shaped here. My understanding of community was shaped here.

So when I hear people talk about patriotism like it only belongs to one kind of person, one political party, one ideology, or one flag-waving crowd, I need to say something clearly:

You don’t own the flag.

The flag belongs to all of us.

It belongs to the families working two jobs and still wondering how they will afford groceries, gas, rent, or child care. It belongs to the parents showing up at school board meetings because they want their children to be safe, protected, and respected. It belongs to the neighbors in Newville who are worried about water. It belongs to the people in Middlesex Township asking hard questions about development and who really benefits when decisions are made without enough community input.

It belongs to the people who have served, the people who have struggled, the people who have fallen down and gotten back up, the people who pray, the people who organize, the people who vote, the people who are exhausted, and the people who are still trying to believe that something better is possible.

The flag belongs to all of us.

And I refuse to concede patriotism to the far right.

Patriotism is not fear. Patriotism is not exclusion. Patriotism is not controlling who gets to belong, who gets to be safe, who gets to be heard, or who gets to participate. Patriotism is not using the language of freedom while taking freedom away from someone else.

Real patriotism means loving your community enough to tell the truth about what is hurting people. It means caring about whether children are protected. It means believing that working people should be able to build a life with some breathing room. It means clean water, safe schools, affordable housing, good jobs, strong public services, and a government that remembers public service means the people come first.

That is the freedom I believe in.

Not freedom for a few. Not freedom for the loudest. Not freedom only for the people who already have power.

Freedom for all of us.

I know some people are tired right now. I understand that. I have talked to people who voted before and stopped because they started to feel like their vote did not matter. I have talked to people who look at politics and see fighting, photo ops, and people trying to make themselves the center of the story.

I understand why people feel disappointed. I understand why people feel pushed out. I understand why people wonder whether showing up makes any difference.

But I also know this: democracy only works when we participate in it. The fact that we have the freedom to participate is why it’s so important that we do just that.

Together.

The people of the 199th District are not props in someone else’s campaign ad. We are not background noise in someone else’s performance. This is not a reality show. This is our home, our families, our schools, our water, our paychecks, and our future. The people of the 199th District are not background characters in someone else’s. YOU are the story.

Your family is the story. Your street is the story. Your school district is the story. Your church, your workplace, your water, your grocery bill, your housing, your children, your future — that is the story.

I am not running because I think I am here to save anybody.

This community does not need saviors.

This community needs representation that actually listens. It needs leadership that tells the truth. It needs someone who understands that being from here matters, knowing the people here matters, and caring about what happens here matters.

I am your neighbor. I’m the person you may see at Denim Coffee in Downtown Carlisle, the person who knows the store owners because they are my friends and supporters, the person who shows up at Carlisle High School basketball games because that is what we do in our community. — to keep showing up after setbacks, to parent with hope in a world that can feel uncertain, to serve even when the work is complicated, and to choose love when fear would be easier. I am someone who believes in grace, accountability, service, and love. 

And yes, I love this country.

Do not tell me that wanting this country to be better means I do not love it. Do not tell me that fighting for more people to be safe, protected, and represented means I do not love it. Do not tell me that speaking up for working families, children, clean water, fair opportunity, and basic dignity means I do not love it.

My love for this country is exactly WHY I want to help make it better.

That is what love does.

Love does not look away. Love does not shrug and say, “That’s just how it is.” Love does not leave people behind and call it freedom.

Love tells the truth. Love shows up. Love protects. Love builds. Love makes room.

This Independence Day, I am thinking about freedom not as a slogan, but as a responsibility.

Freedom means the development of our cherished land should serve communities, not just the people getting richer from it. Inside Carlisle Borough, that means paying attention when land becomes townhomes, apartments, and other projects that affect how people live. Outside the borough, that means asking serious questions when farmland is being considered for data centers and warehouses, especially when those decisions could affect water supplies and surrounding communities.

Freedom means your voice should matter in Harrisburg. Freedom means representation should be about service, not power. Freedom means we do not give up on each other.

So if you are tired, I understand. If you are frustrated, I understand. If you have wondered whether your vote matters, I understand that too.

But I am asking you not to sit out the future of your community.

Register. Volunteer. Donate. Talk to your neighbors. Ask questions. Pay attention. Show up.

Because this district deserves better.

Cumberland County deserves better.

Our children deserve better.

And I still believe we can build something better together. When people decide that love is stronger than fear, when neighbors decide that participation is worth it, and when a community decides that freedom really does belong to all of us, things can change.

That is the kind of patriotism I believe in.

That flag. That special flag. The one so many died to protect...

It belongs to all of us.

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If you believe, as I do, that Pennsylvania’s 199th District deserves better, I’m asking you to be part of helping us build it.

You can donate your time by volunteering with the campaign, knocking doors, making calls, talking with neighbors, helping at events, or sharing your gifts in whatever way you are able. Visit https://www.stallworthforpa.com/ to fill out the volunteer form and let us know how you’d like to help.

You can also donate to help us reach more voters, expand our outreach across the district, and ensure people hear directly from a campaign rooted in service, community, and real representation. To give, visit https://secure.actblue.com/donate/stallworthforpa.

This campaign is powered by people who believe Cumberland County deserves leadership that listens, shows up, and puts the people first. I would be honored to have you with us.