KMXT 100.1 FM Public Radio in Kodiak, Alaska
Mitch Borden/KMXT
There are eight people running for the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly this year. To help our listeners get to know the candidates, KMXT will be airing profiles of them every Tuesday and Thursday leading up to the election. KMXT sat down with Don Roberts to talk about why he thinks he should be on the borough assembly.
Don Roberts has been a volunteer crossing guard for years. He originally came to Kodiak to work at a cannery in the late 1990’s, but he says when he got here it had closed down. Roberts didn’t have a backup plan, so he stayed and has lived in Kodiak for almost 20 years.
One thing Roberts wants people to know is that he cares. As a Kodiak Island Borough Assembly member, he’ll do his best to represent the interests of those who can’t come to meetings.
“I try to understand the issues from the perspectives of those people that can’t be there. You know because you have a lot of people who are working full time and they are working two or three jobs or they’ve got kids or they’re going to school or they might be incarcerated.”
One thing he’d like to work on, if elected, would be making the Kodiak tourist industry more disabled friendly. Roberts thinks this could have a positive effect on the region’s economy.
“If we want a vibrant community, I think we’re going to have to be more accessible for visitors and tourists. when I talk about accessibility I’m talking about being hospitable to people with various disabilities.”
Roberts would like to be an assemblyman known for making time for the people he represents.
“I think people should vote for me because I’m willing to serve and I’m willing to listen. It doesn’t mean I will do what they tell me to do, but I will do my best to listen to what people have to say.”
The election for the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly will be held on October 3rd. You can vote at your local polling place.
