*Daisy Berbeco after her meet and greet at Four Quarters on May 8, 2022. Photo by Jenny Koppang.*

Editor’s note: Daisy Berbeco is the spouse of the Deputy Publisher of The Winooski News, Steven Berbeco, who was not involved in the reporting or editing of this story.

Daisy Berbeco, a mother and former mental health policy adviser for the state of Vermont, announced her candidacy for Winooski House representative earlier this month.

She is running uncontested so far for one of the two Chittenden 6-7 House seats, which is open after current representative Hal Colston announced his retirement in December.

Berbeco held a meet-and-greet session at Four Quarters on Mother’s Day, May 8, to introduce herself and her campaign.

“My neighbors,” she said, gesturing to the small group gathered around her, “remind me about what’s important and the importance of belonging and feeling connected in your community. I want to help everyone in Winooski feel that.”

The gathering consisted of some of Winooski’s most engaged voices, including active community members like Jean Szilva and Kathleen Kemp; City Councilor Aurora Hurd; and Chittenden Senator Kesha Ram Hinsdale, who is running for Vermont’s sole U.S. House seat.

With notepad in hand, Berbeco listened to the concerns of her neighbors as they discussed issues of legislative accessibility, equity, and the inclusion of Winooski’s senior citizens.

“I have a bunch of ideas, and I don’t know how to get them through,” said Szilva. “But you can!”

Berbeco said that she is committed to learning from local Winooskians and facilitating the change that they want to see in their community.

“Talk to me and tell me when you need something,” Berbeco responded earnestly, “I’m here to listen and be a vehicle for lifting up your voices,”

Kemp, sporting a ‘Winooski Strong’ T-shirt, bemoaned the inaccessibility of the legislative process.

“I just learned that anybody can walk through the House and witness a testimony. Most people just don’t know how to access what’s going on,” she said.

Acknowledging that the Statehouse is an intimidating space, Hinsdale offered information on the legislative page project, a program that selects a small group of Vermont eighth-graders to deliver messages for members of the Senate and the House.

“There should be better pathways for Winooski school kids [to access the legislative process]. When we talk about representation, we have got to start there,” she said.

Berbeco jotted down ideas for how she can help people feel closer to the process, including creating a video tour of the Statehouse.

Another community member came forth with concerns about Winooski’s aging population.

“A lot of older folks feel like they’re being left behind. They just want someone to listen to them, to feel like they’re being heard,” they said.

Berbeco asked about what issues are important to older Winooski residents, like quality of life, access to healthcare, and connection within the community.

For the past two and a half years, Berbeco had served as the Senior Policy Advisor for the Vermont Department of Mental Health. This role allowed her to brush elbows with many lawmakers to collaborate on shaping policy initiatives, which she said inspired her to run for State Representative.

“I realized I could do something that had a bigger impact for communities like Winooski,” Berbeco said. “I realized there is a place where I can have more of a voice to vocalize my values.”

There are three values at the heart of Berbeco’s campaign, she said: connection, mobility, and purpose.

For Berbeco, connection to a community is central to wellness and intertwined with the ability to aspire towards a purpose.

“I want to advocate for everyone in Winooski to have a sense of purpose in their community, to feel that they’re needed, they have a job to do, and that they belong here,” she said.

Participation in a community also hinges on the members’ ability to advance their situations, she said.

“I want to improve physical and economic mobility. A lot of folks in my neighborhood lack transportation, or they’re aging, or maybe they don’t have healthcare, childcare, or safe, affordable housing,” Berbeco said. “It’s hard to live with dignity when you don’t have all of those things clicking into place.”

As a parent to two young children, Berbeco said that her identity as a mother has also greatly influenced and enriched her perspective on policy.

“When I became a mom, issues that used to be professional issues suddenly became very personal to me. Childcare is incredibly critical to me, especially after the last two years of COVID, with working full time while schools were shut down,” she said. “Childcare is a policy solution that everyone deserves.”

Looking to other female legislators as role models, Berbeco said that she aspires to enact policies and legislation that advance women’s rights such as reproductive freedom and paid family leave.

“I think when we start addressing [women’s rights] we start seeing communities that are more humane, healthier, and able to take care of each other,” she said.

Other policy priorities at the forefront of Berbeco’s campaign center around equity, health and wellness, and housing, especially for low-income families.

“I am committed to the lifelong process of learning and relearning [about equity],” Berbeco said. “I will continue to have a strong relationship with people in Winooski to regularly inform me on how I’m doing at building in the lens of equity, inclusion, and belonging as I’m making policy at the state level. Does [the policy] reflect the needs of our community?”

The primary election for the Vermont House of Representatives is scheduled for August 9, and the general election will be held Nov. 8, 2022.

Berbeco’s campaign website is daisyforwinooski.com.