This Wednesday, July 18 from 9-10 a.m., the Peace & Justice Report will have in the studio candidate for governor Andrew Gillum and also school board candidate Nick Guy.
Andrew Gillum is the current mayor of Tallahassee. Andrew is running for Governor “to rebuild Florida into a state that works for all of us. He knows everyone deserves good-paying jobs so they can support their families. He wants to protect and expand Floridians’ access to quality, affordable healthcare, especially people with pre-existing conditions. He knows we need to strengthen our public schools and end the culture of high-stakes testing.”
Andrew will be in Sarasota on his way to the debates later Wednesday in Ft. Myers. While in Sarasota you can meet him at one the following places – all barber shops:
9:30am – 11am – Phat Headz, 1818 Martin Luther King Jr. Way
10am – 11:30am – Kuttin’ Up, 2811 N. Tamiami Trail
11am – 12:30pm – Jetson’s Creative Trends, 2741 N Osprey Avenue
See Andrew’s webpage at andrewgillum.com.
Nick Guy is running for the school board district one seat against incumbent Bridget Ziegler who is an advocate for school privatization. Nick is a businessman, parent and former teacher. See his website at votenickguy.com.
Nick Guy’s decision to run for Sarasota County School Board was set into motion by the horrific Marjory Stoneman Douglas mass shooting on February 14th. As that tragedy unfolded, Nick became determined to do something to ensure that a catastrophe like Parkland never comes to Sarasota. Nick believes his personal and professional life experiences will help the Sarasota County School Board move forward in the right direction.
Nick grew up in the small, rural community of North Baltimore, Ohio where he developed his tireless work ethic, family values and a strong sense of community. Dreaming of becoming a teacher from an early age, he followed that dream to the University of Toledo where he earned double degrees in adolescent education and history. Upon graduation, he moved to Florida vowing to “never shovel snow again” and secured a teaching position with the Pinellas County School District. At a Pinellas middle school, Nick taught 7th grade social studies and also worked to integrate technology and creativity into the curriculum. He later left teaching to explore the business side of information technology and software development, leading to his current position as a business analyst for a national heath care company.
In 2009, while at a Tampa Bay Rays game, Nick met his wife Heather, a longtime resident of Sarasota and a graduate of Sarasota High School. Each year, Nick and Heather attend a game near the date of their first encounter and take a picture at the exact spot where Nick said hello to Heather. Over the years, the photo has grown to include their two young daughters, Reese, age 4, and Riley, age 3. Reese will enter Sarasota Public Schools this coming August as a kindergarten student and Riley will enter the following year.
In August 2017, Nick and his family, experienced the trauma of having Riley diagnosed with a rare form of children’s cancer, pleuropulmonary blastoma. Fortunately, surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatments were successful. It is Riley’s strength and courage that inspired Nick to fight for what he believes in the most—quality education, like quality medical care, is a right for all children and a cornerstone of a community’s success.
Winning a seat on Sarasota’s School Board will give Nick a voice in developing a positive school climate that will provide all students with the character development and academic skills necessary to succeed in their careers, higher education and adult life.