Letter To The Editor: In Support Of Becca Rausch For State Senate

The following is a letter to the editor submitted by Needham resident Jenn Scheck-Kahn. Letters can be emailed to Local Editor Dan Libon at Dan.Libon@patch.com.

To the Editor:

I am a Needham resident who will welcome progressive, fair-minded policies in the Massachusetts State Senate, by voting for Becca Rausch, a candidate in the Norfolk, Bristol, and Middlesex district, at the Sept. 4 Democratic primary.

What draws me to Becca is her passion and vision for bringing equity to all families in the form of policies that assure environmental safeguards, expanded healthcare support, publicly funded full-day Kindergarten, accessible and affordable pre-K and child care, protection for immigrant neighbors, respect for transgender youth, voting access, and improved public transit. Underscoring her priorities is a common thread: the ambition to lift us when we are at our most vulnerable. I support Becca because I know many families in my district don’t have the security and opportunities that my family is privileged to enjoy, and they should.
Becca isn’t new to public service. As a union steward, a Town Meeting Member, and an attorney in both the public and private sectors, she developed the expertise necessary for traversing complicated bureaucracies and leading people with disparate views to make reasonable solutions that make our communities stronger. You can find all of this on her website (www.beccarausch.com), as well as her extraordinary personal story as the progeny of heroic acts of civil rights and a person stung by targeted bigotry. She’s also a loving wife and mother of two young boys, a meticulous choreographer, a spirited dancer, and a vibrant member of the Needham Babysitting Cooperative.

Why does her personal story matter? Because the lesson of the #MeToo movement is that we need to question the values of the people to whom we bestow influence in our lives: the people who shape the movies we see, the stories we read, and the politics that govern our rights and opportunities. Representation matters. We need more qualified, experienced women in political positions who can speak for us. We need more moms with proven records of effective advocacy to stand up for our families. We need more people who reflect how we live or strive to live, people who are burning to raise the quality of life for all of us in Massachusetts, and prepared to do just that once we elect them into office.

Becca is a hit-the-ground-running changemaker and when she talks about civics and the policies she’s motivated to enact, I get inspired. Hope stirs again. However low our nation has fallen, she reminds us that local politics are different. We can be better to each other and for each other. I hope that on September 4th you’ll join me in voting for Becca Rausch for State Senate so that she can show us how.

Thank you,

Jenn Scheck-Kahn

Wayne Road, Needham

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