Oct. 24—The contest in the Lockport-based 12th county legislative district is between incumbent Will Collins and first-time candidate Carla Speranza.
After helping senior citizens with their tax returns through AARP, Speranza said she saw how much seniors struggled. Inflation had caused even the cost of staple items to skyrocket, and Speranza said she thought that as a county legislator, she might be able to help ease their burden.
Collins, an eight-year veteran of the Niagara County Legislature, is an accountant and, he says, a no-nonsense legislator who does what he can, when he can. He thinks he's done a good job, but notes there's always room for improvement.
"If someone better comes along? God bless them. Knock yourself out. If I'm no good anymore? I'm OK with that," he said.
Collins has a family history of involvement in local government. His father was a county legislator, his brother was the county auditor and his nephew, James Minner, is a Hartland town justice.
In addition to civic service, Collins said, his family has also encouraged entrepreneurship.
"I've been successfully self employed almost my entire adult life. Accountant, construction. I owned a karate school and I was raised by a family that was successfully self-employed. So for me, it's kind of a way of life," he said.
Speranza has had a variety of jobs as well, in sales, call centers and, currently, as a technology risk adviser for M&T Bank, where she helps engineers protect the bank and its customer from cybertheft.
"My career path has not been the traditional, upward linear trajectory. I've had a lot of ups and downs, like a lot of people professionally," she said.
Speranza believes "sustainable" job opportunities for professionals are lacking in Niagara County and she'd like to see the county legislature address that situation somehow.
"It's not just for me, but people who like this area and want to have their families and grow and prosper here," she said.
A case in point, Speranza said she went back to school to learn more about technology and boost her own resume and skill set. She said she's lucky to be a "life-long learner" and hopes to help others find a field where they can thrive.
She also has been volunteering with the grassroots organization Citizens against Pollution of Niagara (CPON), which advocates for cleanup of contaminated properties in the Eighteen Mile Creek Corridor.
"I got involved and starting to learn about how a lot of the area has contaminated soil which causes all sorts of actual health effects," she said.