Thursday, December 10, 2009

Letter To The Editor From Alicia Bergfeld

Barbara Oldenburg, who has served on the Texas State Democratic Executive Committee as one of the two Senate District 8 Representatives for several years, has resigned effective January 1, 2010. (Dist. Map PDF) As specified in the Rules of the Texas Democratic Party, "When a vacancy occurs on the SDEC, the vacancy shall be filled by the majority vote of the members of the SDEC. The new member shall be an eligible person of the same sex and from the same senatorial district as the vacating member. The Senatorial District Committee of the affected district shall meet to nominate a person for such position." The following letter to the editor of the DBCC is from Alicia Bergfeld, who has announce her candidacy to fill Ms. Oldenburg's vacancy:

Letter To The Editor
by Alicia Bergfeld
My name is Alicia Bergfeld and I am running to be the State Democratic Executive Committee (SDEC) member from Senate District 8. I will be the first to admit that I am not very well known in Collin County…yet.

When I first heard about this vacancy, I was given a brief description of the SDEC and its responsibilities. I was interested immediately: A chance to be involved with the State Democratic Party? Sign me up, I thought. Conveniently, the SDEC was having a meeting in Austin five days later. I traveled to Austin to attend this meeting, and while there, I solidified my desire to join the SDEC.

While in attendance at the SDEC General Meeting, I was struck by a very interesting visual. I was sitting in the back of the room facing the entire SDEC, and I noticed that my demographic, young and female, was not fully represented. Yet those like me are the future of the party, a party that is on the edge of real change. I am committed to engaging the younger generations and bringing them into the fold because whatever change is starting now, my generation will be the ones to continue the progress. I can bring new energy to the state party, and I can help move this party forward into its exciting future.

The Democratic Party in Texas, and in Collin County in particular, is on the cusp of a really important breakthrough. It is truly a tangible feeling among many Democrats. The SDEC is such an important part of the momentum in the County and in the state as a whole. As a member, I would support the Democratic Party wholeheartedly. I would devote as much time (and more) as is necessary to propel Texas Democrats into the forefront. I want to support the Party from the inside. I want to serve Texas well by building the Democratic brand and putting Collin County on the map. I will b e there every step of the way to make sure our party continues to be the party of the people.

I would like to think I have always been a Democrat. I always seemed to be aware of the needs of others and I would try to help in any way possible, even if that meant giving the shoes off my feet (literally). I grew up knowing that I could be anything that I wanted to be, yet at 12 years old, my father told me there were two things that I could never be: a method actor or a Republican. I did not pay much attention to this edict at the time, but as I attended high school and college, I realized that I could not be a Republican. I cared too much about the wellbeing of others. I would absolutely not pass their Reagan-esque litmus test, nor would I want to.

And so I have made it my goal in life to help people and to make a difference in this world. I cannot think of a more appropriate avenue to accomplish this than to help crank the wheels inside the Texas Democratic Party. I may not have been born a Texan, but it is my chosen home. Help me make it the best home it can be.

Alicia Bergfeld currently resides in Plano, TX and works for a non-profit in Dallas that has served the community for nearly 35 years. Alicia earned a Masters of International Relations from Webster University in Geneva, Switzerland. She is an active member of the Texas Democratic Women of Collin County, as well as a dedicated volunteer for Planned Parenthood of North Texas. She is actively trying to establish a Young Democrats group in Collin County, and recently participated in the Campaign Training Series held at Collin College Frisco Campus.


Disclosures: The editor of this blog is an active member of the Democratic Campaign Development Coalition that sponsored a Democratic Campaign Training Education Series, which Ms. Bergfeld attended.

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