Meet Trish
I’ve called Roanoke home since 1984 and have loved living in this community ever since. Making people’s lives better is my passion, and I’m lucky to do that every day as the owner and administrator for Blue Ridge Senior Services and as a member of City Council since January of 2019.
Having been a long-time community advocate, it’s been a privilege to be able to contribute to improving our city over the past year, but we’re just getting started! A full term on City Council will let me continue being a champion for the issues that matter most to you.
Over the years, I’ve built solid relationships throughout the community with advocates and organizations. I’ll continue working directly with them on the changes and issues affecting Roanoke, from affordable housing to public safety. I’ve had a lot of experience in navigating public-private partnerships after serving on the Roanoke Higher Education Authority and board for the Local Office on Aging and I’ll keep using that background to connect our city’s resources.
Thanks for taking the time to learn more about me! I’d love to learn more about you and what you think City Council should work on, so please drop me a line anytime at twhiteboyd@roanokeunited4trish.com.
Serving people before politics:
Making Roanoke an even better place to live starts with listening to you. Our most valuable resource is our people, and hearing your ideas and concerns and then finding solutions is my central focus. One of my favorite things about Roanoke is its different neighborhoods and their unique personalities. I recognize that making the best policy isn’t a one-size-fits all effort: your communities have different needs and you should all have a seat at the table.
TRISH’S PRIORITIES FOR A STRONG ROANOKE:
Livability
- Trish will carry on Roanoke’s tradition of excellent public service by working to build safe and sustainable communities, empowering everyone to participate in the democratic process, and giving families the resources they need to thrive.
- Trish wants to make public transit more accessible and convenient for everyone by securing funding for more frequent and reliable service, utilizing mobile technology for real-time bus location and arrival information, and extending Roanoke’s services areas.
- Trish is a big supporter of our city’s live music scene and will continue to encourage it. She will also work to promote the Elmwood Park Amphitheater to draw more attendance and revenue.
- We want all our neighborhoods to flourish, but gentrification is a concern. Trish wants Council to study this issue so that the negative impact of gentrification can be reversed and avoided in future.
EDUCATION
- Preschool helps both children and parents lead successful and productive lives. Trish will help more families get access to high quality preschool by building upon and expanding Roanoke’s preschool programs to more families and addressing teacher shortage and diversity issues.
- Our students need the skills to succeed in an ever-changing employment landscape. Supporting programs like ROTEC and VWCC programs such as Building, Trades and Technology will help prepare them to get great jobs that pay well.
- Trish will continue work on developing a new suicide prevention program in Roanoke City schools to reduce the number of attempted and completed suicides by our city’s youth.
- Trish wants the city to work with surrounding partners to join the My Brother’s Keeper initiative to close the opportunity gap frequently experienced by young men of color.
SUSTAINABILITY
- Trish will search for viable options for renewable energy and solar energy for municipal buildings, businesses, residents or anyone interested in improving our environment.
- Improve Public Transit: Trish wants to make public transit more accessible and convenient for everyone. These improvements include securing funding for more frequent and reliable service, utilizing mobile technology for real-time bus location and arrival information, and extending Roanoke’s services areas as well as adding electric buses to the fleet. These efforts will continue to move Roanoke towards an environmentally friendly city.
- Implement Neighborhood-Specific, Sustainable Development: Trish recognizes that each neighborhood has specific needs. Trish believes in giving neighborhoods a voice. Each neighborhood is so unique and diverse. From the historic neighborhoods like Mountain View to areas like Historic Gainsboro, each neighborhood reflects its residents in a unique way. Trish believes our greatest potential lies in empowering the people in Roanoke’s neighborhoods to speak up for their community. She will listen and act on favorable recommendations that will make this city better.
INVESTING IN ROANOKE
- Affording life’s necessities should not be a struggle. Trish will work to ensure the residents of Roanoke can all fulfill their basic needs. She also supports a “Housing First” approach to homelessness.
- Advocating for more affordable housing is a must for our city. We don’t have enough affordable housing available in Roanoke to meet current and future demand. Trish is currently working to find unique, innovative and cost-effective ways to provide more affordable and workforce housing. She also supports efforts and incentives to allow homeowners in low density neighborhoods to build supplemental dwelling units to add to our affordable housing stock.
- Each of our neighborhoods has specific needs and deserves to have a voice. From Mountain View to historic Gainsboro, each neighborhood reflects its residents in a way that is unique to that part of Roanoke. Our greatest potential lies in empowering people to speak up for their community. She will listen and act on recommendations that will make this city better.
- Trish will search for viable options for renewable energy and solar energy for municipal buildings, businesses, residents or anyone interested in improving our environment.
GROWING BUSINESS
- Trish is committed to smart growth and development via ongoing dialogue among the city, residents, and developers. She will prioritize proper planning and coordination so we can stay true to our city’s character while also avoiding too much construction and traffic delays in any given neighborhood.
- Expanding our adaptive reuse program will allow us to creatively repurpose some of the great infrastructure we already have.
- Trish will continue to focus on recruiting businesses that will provide competitive wages and benefits for our residents in all fields from technology to medical and everything in between. Workforce opportunities should be as diverse as our residents.
BALANCED BUDGETS AND FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
- Every budget Trish has ever managed has remained in the black, whether it’s at her workplace, a nonprofit organization, or the family budget.
- Trish will work to ensure our city operates within a balanced budget. She believes we must make fiscal responsibility and good stewardship of our taxpayers’ money a priority.
PUBLIC HEALTH & SAFETY
- Law enforcement plays a crucial role in protecting communities and assisting people in crisis. Trish will continue to work with the Roanoke City Police Department to ensure police have the tools they need to properly serve and protect all Roanokers by implementing enhanced training regarding mental health, sexual assault, people with disabilities, and diversity issues.
- Opioid abuse has hit our city hard, so Trish will continue work on Roanoke’s comprehensive response to the crisis through better treatment resources and education.
- Trish will continue support of tools and programs to combat human sex trafficking in our region.
- Gun violence has impacted cities across the nation, and Roanoke is no different. Trish will work with law enforcement on solutions specific to Roanoke as well as advocating for relevant legislation in the General Assembly.
HONORING AND SUPPORTING OUR CITY’S VETERANS
- Trish has a very special place in her heart for veterans and military families. She grew up without a father after he was killed in the Vietnam War. Both of her grandfathers were military veterans and she has many other family members who have defended this country in various wars and conflicts.
- Thanks to visionary leaders before us, Roanoke has made veterans’ services a priority and Trish wants to continue that commitment by supporting the many ways we honor and care for those who’ve served our country. She will join forces with other veterans’ advocates on our city council and maintain a strong network of support services for our veterans and their families.
A WELCOMING CITY FOR ALL
- Roanoke is known for leading the way in promoting and celebrating diversity with our annual Local Colors festival. Trish is a pro-equality candidate; she firmly believes that Roanoke must be a welcoming place for people of all ethnic backgrounds, abilities; religions, genders and sexual orientations. She supports our city’s nondiscrimination ordinance and ongoing equality efforts.
- Trish will continue to support organizations that help our city’s refugees and immigrants get settled and acclimated. She believes these services help those new to Roanoke and the U.S. become happy and productive members of our community.
