My Name is Trista MatasCastillo, I’m a mother, an advocate for social Justice, and a Veteran and I’m running for Ramsey County Commissioner to represent District 3.
On September 11th, I was a Marine but on that morning I was in a doctors office with my then 2 year old son learning news that would change our lives and my career forever. As our country was under attack, the doctor was delivering the diagnosis that Hunter was severely autistic and developmentally delayed and that things probably were the best they were ever going to be. My world crumbled. I remember looking down at my uniform and thinking, I’ve trained my entire life to fight for my country but nothing has prepared me to care for a disabled child.
I had to turn to our county for services. It has been a 17 year battle. I share this with you not for pity, but, because its an illustration of what needs to change in our system, and I know it first hand from my own personal experience, that when people need to turn to the county for services it is because something in their life isn’t going well for them.
Recently, I was visiting with a retired-teacher in Falcon Heights who is now the primary care-giver and guardian to her elderly mother with Alzheimer’s. She shared me that she has struggled to navigate county services, and often feels overwhelmed and isolated by the amount of care her mother requires. We shared tears as we talked about the loneliness and frustration of filling out paperwork and being made to feel like when you do get help, you are “lucky”.
Then our conversation went to the rest of our community, wondering if it is so difficult for us, how hard it must be for others. For folks who don’t speak English as their first language, who are so overwhelmed with other issues in life like; sustaining affordable housings, finding work that can support their family, gaining citizenship and navigating the system meant to punish us when we fail instead of as a safety net when we fall.
I served in our nations military for 16 years. I can tell you that as a woman in uniform I have faced adversity, sexism, discrimination and even personal violence. Yet, I persisted, because I knew that I needed to pave the way for all those who came behind me to ensure that their experience would be better.
For the past 10 years I have spent my time as a community organizer, advocate and lobbyist fighting for affordable housing, homelessness, gender-justice, and fighting and preventing sexual assault, I’ve written, made policy and spoken across the country on issues of mental health, trauma, equality and caring for our community. In every aspect I have brought bold, courageous leadership deeply rooted in values of inclusion, access for all abilities, love and respect. I’ve developed programs to recognize and give space to voices that are historically absented from public policy and public spaces, like awarding and honoring our Hmong Veterans for their service and working to change the name of Historic Fort Snelling to include: at Bdote, in honor of the sacred Dakotah land. I’ve challenged ideas and biasses in hostile spaces where anger fuels and makes people dig in to their own ideas crippling progress, and I have been able to bring people together on what connects them instead of what divides them.
I have been listening to our neighbors about bringing progressive change to the Ramsey County board. In hundreds of conversations I’ve heard a few things loud and clear. First, many want to better understand what our county commissioners do and what our county government can do to help make our lives better. It’s not that we’re disinterested in our government, it’s that our government -in some ways- has been disinterested in us. Time after time when I spoke with families in our neighborhoods, I’ve heard they didn’t know who represented them on the county board. It’s time for that to change.
The county’s main function is to provide a safety net for all of its residents.
As a commissioner, I will work to build a working economy by bringing living-wage jobs and development throughout the district and invest in county programs that support our residents at every stage of life, like our child care assistance, mental health programs, and senior services and ensure more families have access to high quality affordable housing.
I believe when we create policies to meet the needs of the most vulnerable people, we create policies that are equitable and benefit everyone in our community.
I am Trista MatasCastillo, and I am running for Ramsey County Commissioner District 3 because we must, and we CAN do better for our community.