Vermont Business Magazine Today, Democratic Candidate for Congress Molly Gray announced her first campaign hires and key advisors. Samantha Sheehan will serve as Campaign Manager and Liz Brown will serve as Deputy Campaign Manager. Owen Milne will serve as Finance Chair, and Dr. Sefakor G.M.A. Komabu-Pomeyie joins the team as a Special Advisor to the campaign on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
“Our campaign has continued to build strength and momentum,” said Gray, “that is in large part thanks to the hard work of this incredible team. I’m so proud to introduce this talented group of Vermonters who are committed to using their skills and experience to build a brighter future for our state. Together, we’ll build a bold and inclusive campaign that reaches every corner of Vermont.”
Campaign Manager Samantha Sheehan of Hancock ran Gray’s successful 2020 campaign for Lieutenant Governor where she prevailed in a crowded Democratic primary field and against self-funded four-time Republican candidate Scott Milne. Sheehan went on to manage Democrat Miro Weinberger’s recent campaign, winning him a fourth term as Burlington’s Mayor. Before entering electoral politics, she ran communications for Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility, a progressive statewide business association that advocates for “triple bottom line” policy.
She currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Hancock-Granville Unified School Board and on the Executive Committee of the Vermont Democratic Party and is a 2020 graduate of the Emerge Vermont Signature Training Program.
“Our campaign is all about bringing people together to get tough things done,” said Sheehan, “We’ll work hard to reach every community in Vermont because our team knows that makes for a stronger, more representative democracy that delivers for the people of Vermont.”
Deputy Campaign Manager Liz Brown of Burlington previously served as Gray’s Political Advisor. Before moving back to Vermont, she worked for Abby Finkenauer for Congress in Cedar Rapids, Iowa where she served as Finance Assistant and raised nearly $6 million for a Frontline member of Congress in one of the most competitive races of the 2020 cycle.
Brown has also worked on the finance team of Senator Claire McCaskill’s 2018 re-election campaign in Saint Louis, Missouri and in the Senate offices of Senators Bernie Sanders and Kristen Gillibrand as well as at Precision Strategies, a top public relations and consulting firm in Washington.
Brown was a 2021 EMILY’s List Ignite the Change Fellow and has completed the finance track of Arena Academy, a campaign training program. A graduate of Burlington High School and Mount Holyoke College, Brown currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Vermont Democratic Party.
“Since a young age, I have been committed to public service and to electing women to office, however, like many young Vermonters, my career took me away from home,” said Brown, “I’m thrilled to be back in my home state, using my skills and experience to help to lead Molly’s campaign and to elect her as Vermont’s first Congresswoman.”
Finance Chair Owen Milne of Burlington has served as the Executive Director for the Community Sailing Center since 2017. Before his work at the Community Sailing Center, Milne worked as a Workplace Consultant for Red Thread and as the Director of Development for Vermont Businesses For Social Responsibility.
Since 2008, he has played an active role in the community through service with a variety of nonprofits and government commissions. Owen has served on the board of Directors for Northeast Disabled Athletic Association, Vermont Green Building Network, Leadership Champlain, Lake Champlain Chamber of Commerce, United Way of Northwest Vermont, Generator Burlington, Spectrum Youth and Family Services, and currently serves on the board of Vermont State Employees Credit Union.
He has also served on the Governors’ Committee for Employment of People with Disabilities, SerVermont, and was a co-chair for Burlington/Winooski school districts’ Partnership for Change. In 2011, Owen was awarded the Rising Star award by Vermont Business Magazine, and in 2019 he was awarded the Peter Clavelle Award for Community Service.
Milne said, “As a father, I’ve always found it troubling that the role models for our daughters and granddaughters always seem to be athletes, pop stars, or actors. It’s imperative that there be Vermont women serving at the highest levels of government that are also accessible and genuinely care for the interests of all people, especially youth, in our communities. I sincerely believe Molly to have the audacity and tenacity to succeed in Washington, and the humility to remain connected locally in our towns and neighborhoods.”
Campaign Special Advisor, Dr. Sefakor G.M.A. Komabu-Pomeyie of Colchester is an international disability rights advocate and policy analyst as well as the Founder and Managing Director of Enlightening and Empowering People With Disabilities, where she concentrates on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (UNCRPD).
Dr. Komabu-Pomeyie earned her P.h.D. from the University of Vermont in 2020. As a Special Advisor to the campaign, Dr. Komabu-Pomeyie will advise the campaign on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, helping to uphold the campaign’s commitment to accessibility and inclusivity in all operations, communications, and engagement.
“My personal experience as a woman of color with a physical disability has shaped my journey as an international advocate for the underrepresented, especially people with disabilities from around the globe. I look forward to working with Molly to remove all types of barriers confronting people with disabilities including attitudinal and cultural barriers in Vermont. I share Molly’s commitment to working to make Vermont an accessible and inclusive place for all.”
More information about Gray’s campaign for congress can be found at www.mollyforvermont.com.
Source: Burlington, VT — Molly Gray Campaign 12.29.2021
https://vermontbiz.com/news/2021/december/29/molly-gray-announces-campaign-team