To the voters of Greene County,
I am Melissa (Bosshart) Frederick, and I am running for Supervisor in District 3. I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself to the voters of Greene County.
I am one of Steve and Tracy Bosshart’s three children and grew up on their acreage by Squirrel Hollow. In 2009 I graduated from Jefferson-Scranton High School. Following high school, I attended the University of Iowa and obtained my degree in biology with a chemistry minor.
After graduating college, I moved back to Greene County fulltime. I worked for a year and a half doing quality control for Continental Manufacturing Chemist in Madrid. Following this, I found a job closer to home in the lab at Louis Dreyfus Company in Grand Junction, where I have worked for four years. Three years ago I married my husband, Bill Frederick, who farms cattle, corn, and soybeans with his family south of Jefferson. In April we welcomed our daughter Leah into our family.
That last sentence is a significant part of why I am running for supervisor at this time. I had a great experience growing up in Greene County, and I was fortunate enough to be able to return here. I want the same for my daughter, and I want to take part in making sure Greene County is a place where my, and other families, can thrive.
So what does this look like? After taking stock of my personal experiences and the concerns of the voters of Greene County, I think there are several issues that take precedence at this time.
The first that I will address is CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations). These are a concern because they are the livelihood of some, while for others, they are an environmental concern. My stance is this: I will vote for CAFOs on a case by case basis. CAFOs are being used by young farmers as a way to diversify and be able to return home to family farms, and I don’t want to discourage that. However, we also need to consider the impact on air, soil, and water quality and mitigate the negative impacts on our land.
The next issue that is going to make a large impact on Greene County is the provision of EMS services. The current provider for Greene County announced their intention to retire, and the county had no backup plan for providing EMS services. The county is under no obligation to provide an ambulance service, but it is a necessity for the citizens of our county. If Greene County does not have an EMS service, people will be very wary about moving here. We must move forward on making sure we have a plan in place to continue the provision of this service.
A third issue that is going to play an important role in the future of our county is housing. Housing impacts not only the ability to draw people into Greene County, but also where the money of our county ends up. If people are working here but not living here, that is money that does not return to our local businesses. We are at a unique place in our history where we have the ability to use TIF funds in conjunction with collaboration with GCDC or Region XII to look at new housing opportunities.
There are many more issues on the minds of the citizens of our county, and if given the opportunity, I look forward to conversing with and representing the opinions of those citizens. I am eager and willing to work hard and do my best to responsibly manage the resources of our county and promote its growth. I would appreciate your support on November 6th.
Melissa Frederick, District 3 Supervisor candidate, Greenbrier Township
