Brandell Adams is a 31-year-old Bridgeport Township native. He graduated from Bridgeport High School in 2008 and went on to attain his Associate Degree in Business at Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids before finishing his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Saginaw Valley State University, with a minor in philosophy. He is currently in his second year at Concord Law School.
Brandell serves as a Trustee on the Bridgeport Charter Township Board. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the NAACP-Saginaw branch, where he serves as Assistant Treasurer. He also serves as Vice Treasurer of the Saginaw County Democratic Party. Brandell is currently an Academic Advisor as well as the Second Chance Pell Coordinator at Delta College.
Alex is a lifelong Bay City Sixth Ward resident who became active in politics in 2017. He graduated from Bay City Central High School in 2009 and obtained a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in Accounting from Northwood University in 2013. Alex has been involved with Boy Scouts of America (BSA) for most of his life, achieving the rank of Eagle Scout in 2007 and being an Assistant Scoutmaster with his former troop for the past six years. He has been married to his wife Samantha since 2014 and became a father in 2021 to Taivyn. In Bay City politics he was first elected as a write-in candidate to the 2017 Charter Commission where he helped Bay City revise its charter to bring it into the 21st century by writing language to improve transparency and accountability in local government. He ran for the Sixth Ward Commissioner seat in 2019 and is eager to learn from that attempt to be a stronger candidate going forward. Alex currently runs one of the largest political activism pages in Bay County and is a regular at City Commission meetings. His favorite president is Theodore Roosevelt.
My name is Andrew Freigang and I am the Legislative Aide for State Representative Rodney Wakeman. I graduated from Marquette University in the Spring of 2021 with a B.S. in Chemistry. During my time at Marquette I took part in two different research groups, one focused on developing a post-menopausal drug and the other focused on attaching ligands to a gold nano-particle, I was a Teachers Assistant for a Quantitative Analysis lab, was Assistant Lab Coordinator for the Organic Chemistry labs for several years, interned for Hydrite Chemical Company as an Analytical Chemistry Intern where I developed a process that refined the production of a temperamental product for a client and held several leadership roles within my fraternity including Ritual Chair, Sergeant at Arms, and President. I hope to use my diverse background and leadership experience to become a lobbyist for a chemical company or environmental agency.
My name is Alexander Goetz. I am 21 years old and graduated from Garber high school in 2019. I am currently working at Meijer pharmacy in Essexville as a Pharmacy Technician, where I just recently finished all of my classwork to become a licensed technician through the state of Michigan. I have been living in the Bay City area my whole life and have had an Interest in politics since the 2016 presidential election. I have been spectating the field very closely for a long time and am finally ready to get my foot in the door. I am looking forward to having constructive conversations with my classmates and faculty. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be here to learn more about the ins and outs of public policy.
My name is De’Ondre (DJ) Hogan. I am honored to be selected to participate in the Henry Marsh Institute for Public Policy. My family and I moved to Midland in March 2021, after I accepted a position to be Midland Public Schools’ first Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. I am a graduate of Grand Valley State University. There, I majored in Criminal Justice, with a minor in Sociology. Shortly after, I earned a Master’s Degree in Public Administration. My work experience has centered around schools, consistently working in a mentor capacity to students, as well as community liaison. During my time as an Equity and Inclusion Coordinator, I developed mentorship programs for students, coaching them to take advantage of opportunities to learn, grow, and achieve. My time as a Community School Coordinator involved working directly with students and families to ensure any needs were met: from food and clothes, to mental health services. I am extremely interested in expanding my learning in public policy. In particular, the process in which they are created, the intended impact, and the actual impact on the citizens that abide by them. I am married to a wonderful Midland Public Schools (MPS) fifth grade teacher. We are proud parents to two amazing children. I look forward to expanding my learning and skills during the Henry Marsh Institute for Public Policy.
Joslyn has deep roots in both Saginaw, where she grew up, and in Bay County, where she has lived for 17 years. She has been the Membership & Marketing Director at the Dow Bay Area Family YMCA for almost 9 years. Joslyn graduated from Nouvel Catholic Central and SVSU, with a Bachelors Degree in Fitness and Sports Management. Joslyn proudly serves on the Bay City Public School Board of Education where she was elected in the 2020.
My name is Patricia 'Pat' Mecham. I am from Vassar, Michigan. I am a 66-year-old Christian Conservative. I was raised by my high school math teacher, father, and my stay-at-home mother of nine. As children we did not grow up particularly political, but Christian values and giving back to the community were taught and expected of us by our parents.
I'm currently a city councilwoman on the Vassar City Council and have been since 2018, when I was appointed to fill an open seat. Since that time, I've been elected to a three-year term. Of my eight siblings and I, five of us remain in Vassar. With them comes their children and their grandchildren. We must lead by example in a small-town setting, along with statewide and nationwide settings.
My husband, Steve, and I raised two children who are now active citizens, and with them comes nine grandchildren, ranging in age from 22-years-old to 21-months-young. The older grandchildren are watching the world around them and forming opinions. The younger grandchildren don't have a clue.
These beautiful people in my life are the reason I feel compelled to be involved. The division in our country is staggering! I don't want that for them. I don't want that for any of our children. They will be too far behind the 8-ball on the world stage if we do not help mend this divide.
Shelley was raised with a sense of service to her community. The proud daughter of a United States Air Force Veteran, and educators, she realized the value in helping others from a young age. Her love of politics also began early in life when her mother engaged her in working on campaigns both local and national. It was a childhood ambition to be involved in local politics, as her grandparents were heavily involved at the state level, and would introduce her to many of their friends, who served in various positions. Keeping true to her lifelong career goal of being in real estate, her career is now self-sufficient enough to branch out to run for the 7th Ward Commission seat for Bay City, which brings her here to Henry Marsh. Shelley serves on the Government Relations, RPAC, and Education Committees within the REALTOR Association of Bay County, and has also served as their Past President, and won the REALTOR of the Year designation for 2019/2020. She is engaged to Richard Kozuch, retired Fire Marshal & Acting Chief for the Bay City Fire Department (now BC Public Safety). When she’s not working, Shelley & Richard are building their hunting lodge near Shepherd, MI, and spending quality time with her Labradors, Trammell & Whitaker.
Diva Patel is currently a sophomore at Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU) with a double major in political science and cell biology, molecular biology, and biomedical sciences. At SVSU, Diva is the president of the SVSU College Democrats, the treasurer for the SVSU Law Club, a member of the SVSU Biology Club, and a member of Pi Sigma Alpha, the national political science honors society. After graduating, Diva plans to attend law school or a graduate school program.
Diva is from Kawkawlin, Michigan, but after her parents moved to Texas in the summer of 2020, she has spent time alternating between the two states. Diva's parents are immigrants from Gujarat, India, and she is fluent in Gujarati and experienced with Gujarati culture. She is also a dual citizen of the United States and Canada.
Diva graduated from Bay City Western High School in 2020. Her interest in politics began in high school, and it has continued to grow since then. Diva's other interests include reading, writing, community service, history, science, and trivia.
Trey Pinkstock is a recent graduate from The Ohio State University and currently serves the Bay Area Chamber of Commerce as the marketing and communications director. Originally from Wooster, Ohio, Trey moved to Bay City in early 2020 with his Fiancé, while finishing his college classes. In November 2021, Trey was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Bay City Commission.
Abigail Sefcik (SEF-sick) is a second-year student at Saginaw Valley State University, double majoring in Political Science and Professional/Technical Writing. Abigail is a primary resident in the village of Bellevue, MI, and is Alumna of Olivet High School in the Class of 2020. Since arriving at SVSU, Abigail has served on the board of editors for The Sovereign, and after reviving the chapter, is now serving as President of the College Republicans at SVSU, for a second term. As President, she has worked with the College Democrats to implement Pastries & Politics, a bipartisan forum to respectfully discuss current events with interested students. Previously, Abigail co-hosted and produced a podcast, and spent the summer of 2021 as an intern in the Michigan Senate.
A lifelong resident of the Great Lakes Bay Region, Sam is a proud graduate of Bay City All Saints, and enjoys giving back the community – volunteering for various civic organizations; some include: The Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame, Historical Society of Saginaw County, Fordney Club of Saginaw County, YMCA of Saginaw and Major Chords for Minors.
Tricia Wilson is a Health and Safety Technologist for The Dow Chemical Company. Her personal mission is to assist Research and Development Scientist to create world changing products in the safest way possible. Tricia is committed to educating her Dow peers and external colleagues on reducing incidents through careful reflection and risk reduction methods. She is also involved in the Diversity and Inclusion efforts within the R&D community. It is her sincere hope that the future of Dow (and the world) is better because we worked hard to slay dragons that divide and exclude.
Tricia has been published in the American Chemical Society Journal. She has co-authored many internal reports and has two patent applications. She is a public speaker, speaking on topics of Incident Reduction and Resilience. Tricia holds a bachelor’s degree in Occupational Safety and Health from Columbia Southern University.
Tricia has been married to her husband Patrick for 25 years. They have four amazing adult children, 3 adorable grandchildren and two fuzzy Goldendoodles. Tricia and Pat have enjoyed what they call the “Wonder Years” by visiting Africa, Alaska and if not for Covid, Europe. They are active in the Northern Michigan University Alumni Association and the Alzheimer Association.
The Henry Marsh Institute for Public Policy is administered by the Office of Governmental and Community Affairs at Saginaw Valley State University with guidance from two advisory boards. Funding to support the Henry Marsh Institute for Public Policy is provided by the Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation, Michigan associations, corporations, labor organizations, Henry Marsh Institute alumni, and individuals.
