DEAR CUTLER BAY
A LETTER FROM B.J. - FOR CUTLER BAY MAYOR
Three generations of roots. A lifetime of love for this Town. And a commitment to keep it the place we're all proud to call home.
DEAR CUTLER BAY,
I was born and raised here in Cutler Bay - Cutler Ridge, at the time - a child of the 80s. My parents still live at the family home that me and my brother grew up in. We rode out Hurricane Andrew in that house (one of the craziest nights of my life), and all of us came together as neighbors after the storm to pull together and help each other out.
THIS COMMUNITY RAISED ME. AND I CAN THINK OF NOTHING BETTER THAN TO WORK TIRELESSLY TO PAY IT BACK.
My family was my rock growing up. My dad worked over 40 years as an auto parts salesman, while my mom worked for the United States Postal Service. They instilled in me a sense of hard work and determination - the idea that if you want something in life, you have to work for it. Through their own grit and perseverance, they gave my brother and I every opportunity in life to succeed, with unconditional love and support. I am who I am today because of them, and I am forever grateful.
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I attended Whispering Pines Elementary School, walked around the lake on the 4th of July every year, grew up going to the National Karate Academy next to the (original) Publix on Old Cutler Road, and remember watching the fireworks being shot off behind the Publix every year on the 4th. Fishing down at Black Point and off bridges and canals, watching my brother play soccer at Cutler Ridge Park (and walking through haunted houses set up in the pool house). This community raised me. And I can think of nothing better than to work tirelessly to try and pay it back and provide the same opportunities and experiences to Cutler Bay residents for generations to come.
I got the acting bug in middle school, which led to high school and college at Florida International University. I love theatre, and I love the arts. They foster creativity, self-confidence, independence, and an overall sense of happiness and belonging. Theatre has given me so much — I've been able to make and build a career out of it (mostly in technical theatre, which I am a much better technician and scenic carpenter than I ever was an actor).
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It also introduced me to my wife, and love of my life, Amy. I've spent over half of my life with her, each day better than the one before. We have two beautiful sons — Orion, who attends public school in Town, and our newest addition, baby Arlo.
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It was important for us, when settling down, to live here in Cutler Bay. To set our roots down here, so that our kids can have the same experiences - and even better ones - as I did growing up. There is nowhere else we would rather raise a family than here in our hometown.
The day my dad came home from the hospital back in 1957, it was to a house on Christmas Road. The day I came home from the hospital, it was to a house on Sterling Drive. And now, my sons came home from the hospital to our home on Franjo Road. Wouldn't want it any other way.
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And those are pretty much the A-B-C's of me. I am a second-generation Cutler Ridge kid, the son of working class parents, who loves his family, the arts, the Miami Dolphins and Miami Heat. I've built scenery and furniture with my hands, built relationships with my heart, and built a legacy over the past 8 years on the Cutler Bay Town Council that I am proud of.
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I would love nothing more than to earn your vote and to be given the opportunity to be Mayor of our beautiful Town for the next four years — and to continue to build upon our successes.
Sincerely yours,