Who is Angie Schaefer?
Running for State Representative is a very personal opportunity for me. Having lived in Missouri for the past 25 years, and raised just across the river in Southern Illinois, I can honestly say it has been a long time since I felt my local representatives faithfully represented the interests of my family and me.
I see the role of Representative as both a privilege and a great responsibility. I will use this opportunity to add lost voices to the narrative of our local governing and not just those who have had the loudest voices in the past.
So who am I and which lost voices do I hope to empower?
I had my daughter in 1986 and for thirteen years raised her as a single, working mother with help from a very strong network of family and friends. I began as a volunteer with my daughter’s brownie troop in the early 1990s using what little time I had between work and college classes to help out with the cookie sale. It was the best I could do at the time; however, the education I received from this group of parents was incredible. Almost every mother of Troupe 47 had a job or career outside of the home. We all had to pitch in and help each other in order to make it all happen. I learned that sometimes stapling badges on to your daughter’s sash is perfectly fine. I learned that moms who didn’t work outside the home supported those who did. I am eternally thankful to all of those moms who helped me shuffle my daughter from school to activities and home for dinner when I couldn’t be there. And, I learned that it truly does take a village to raise, love, care for, and provide the best lives for our children.
When my daughter Courtney was in the third grade, I was invited to a service at Manchester United Methodist Church by a dear friend and my life was changed. I walked in and felt right at home; as a life-long Catholic, this feeling was surprising. It was at MUMC that my daughter found a relationship with God and we both found a strong faith community. I spent the next 19 years at MUMC volunteering in every way I could - marketing and outreach teams; Spirit Camp Counselor; I served on the preschool committee and VBS committee, taught Sunday School, worked on various fundraisers, and much more. My 19 years at Manchester provided a church family like no other and is one I will forever appreciate.
I remarried in 2000 and Jeff and I have two boys together. We chose to raise them in the Parkway South area; Joey will be a Junior in the fall and Jeffrey will be attending Missouri S&T. Over the years I have volunteered in nearly every aspect of my children’s school, scout, and church lives, allowing me to develop strong relationships with parents and teachers and experience the diversity of concerns and issues that we face as a community. I was on the Oak Brook PTO, I led the student Newspaper club, and I organized the “Kids Vote” program for the 2008 elections, teaching students about the democratic process.
In addition to my focus on our immediate area, I have been and continue to be involved with larger charities and groups devoted to services for children and families including Children's Miracle Network and CASA (now merged with Voices for Children). I am currently serving my second term on the Board of Directors for Kids in the Middle, a St. Louis-based non-profit counseling resource for children and families.
I appreciate the direct and indirect impacts government has on my life, my family, my friends, and my community. I am passionate about issues that affect children and families: Voting Rights, LGBTQ rights, Women’s Reproductive Rights, Education, Health Care, and Mental Health—you get the picture. But I was inspired to join this race to become your Representative because I am most passionate about my community, the “village” that has supported and nurtured my family and me for over 25 years.
For anyone who has yet to meet me, I hope this small introduction makes you feel like you have someone in your corner. It is YOUR voice I want to hold to the microphone. I will listen. I will stand up. I will absolutely fight for EVERY person in the 98th district. Anyone who DOES know me will tell you I am bold, determined, not easily shaken and I ALWAYS do what is best for the greater good.
I believe this community deserves someone like me as a Representative. I am YOUR candidate. Click HERE to begin making calls.
Ready to make calls? Click HERE. Want to know more? Scroll down to see where Angie Schaefer stands on the issues.
Healthcare
Quality, accessible, and affordable healthcare is every Missourian’s right. But every year Missouri families must make increasingly difficult decisions for how they prioritize spending on prescription drugs and medical bills over the basic costs of living.
At the same time, Missouri's legislature has left millions of federal dollars on the table meant for expanding healthcare access to Missourians. Their inaction means less healthy communities, higher premiums for those with coverage, and the loss of hospitals, especially in rural areas.
As your state representative, I’ll support common sense measures like expanding Medicaid, so no Missourian is forced to choose between a decent job and keeping their healthcare.
Education
Every Missouri child should have access to free, quality public education regardless of their zip code. As your representative, I will work to strengthen our public schools and fully fund our commitment to our kids.
I will support universal early childhood education, because investing in our kids from an early age is the best way for us to invest in our future. I will also support investment in higher education and workforce training, to ensure all Missourians have the opportunity to gain the skills to compete in our economy.
Jobs
A strong economy is one that works for everyone. As your state rep, I’ll fight for those who truly build up our economy—our workers—for the wages, benefits, and protections they deserve. I’ll support investments in educational opportunities to support a 21st century workforce.
I’ll work for policies that support local businesses who provide good jobs in our state and keep our economy growing. And I’ll work to bring new businesses here that want to capitalize on our skilled Missouri workforce and quality of life. But I’ll always put workers’ interests before the special interests of large corporations.
Reproductive Freedom
Every person should have the autonomy to make decisions about their body and their life. Recent legislation limits access to abortion even in cases of rape, incest, or medical need.
Reproductive freedom encompasses much more than abortion including: Comprehensive reproductive health care, elimination of barriers to access and rights so all individuals have the ability and resources necessary to choose if/when and how/with whom to form their families and to parent in dignity, safety and good health.
Mothers die from childbirth in Missouri in numbers far greater than the rest of the industrialized world, and instead of promoting healthcare, Missouri legislators have placed burdensome restrictions on it.
As your state rep, I will stand with you for the right to make the best decisions about your healthcare for your own lives.
Nondiscrimination
Every year for the past two decades, the Missouri Non-Discrimination Act (MONA) has been filed, only to be blocked by Republicans. MONA would allow basic protections to our LGBTQ community by adding sexual orientation and gender identity to Missouri’s Human Rights Act.
Missourians should not have to fear losing their jobs or being denied housing for who they love—discrimination that is currently completely legal in our state.
Meanwhile, the Missouri legislature has passed laws in recent years making it easier for employers, landlords or businesses to discriminate based on race, age, religion or gender—more so than in any other state.
As your state rep, I will work for a Missouri that welcomes people regardless of race, religion, gender, age or sexual orientation, and protects all people from discrimination.
Public Safety
Central to the role of government is to fairly enforce the law, and to provide protection for its people. I will support our law enforcement officers in their difficult jobs, while also demanding accountability when they overreach.
I will support tough sentences for violent criminals, while also seeking ways to reduce our prison population and reintegrate folks into society after they have served their time. I’ll also support drug treatment courts and diversion programs that find alternative ways to punish and rehabilitate non-violent criminals without simply throwing them in prison.
No matter where you live in Missouri, the root causes of crime are the same: a lack of educational and work opportunities, along with drug addiction and poverty. Addressing these basic issues must always be central in any conversation about crime.
Transparency and Ethics
Faith in government and the political process is the cornerstone of a functioning democracy. As your state rep, I’ll fight to shine a light on those who conceal their donors and influence our politics with dark money.
Over the years, the barrier between special interests and politics has been eroded. In 2018, Missourians overwhelmingly voted in favor of Amendment 1, known as CLEAN MO. It capped contributions, limited the way money could move in and out of campaign coffers and prevented map-rigging schemes.
THEN, in the middle of a pandemic, while trying to finalize a state budget, Republicans decided to overturn the choice of more than 67% of bi-partisan voters! They told us our ballots didn't matter and we did not understand what we were voting for. They put the issue back on the ballot for November 3, 2020 as Amendment 3.
Let's show Jefferson City we DID understand what we were voting for and
VOTE NO ON AMENDMENT 3! [click here for a list of Dirty Missouri opponents ]
Farms
Agriculture is the backbone of Missouri, and at the heart of it are our family farms—where many of us call home and why generations before us settled here. But passing down our way of life to future generations is becoming increasingly challenging.
Our local communities used to have a say in how farming was done in our backyards, but the current majority in our state legislature has passed bills favoring large corporate farms and pushing out family farms.
Last year, legislators passed a bill taking control from local communities to regulate certain large feeding operations known as CAFOs. This allows large scale operations to buy up local farms, push the production limits of the land, and pollute our communities’ treasured landscape without local oversight.
As your state rep, I’ll advocate for the state of Missouri to protect local control, giving ordinary citizens easier access to have their say on how farming operates in their community.
Opioid Epidemic
Our prescription drug epidemic tragically touches too many families in every community across Missouri. Tracking the frequency of prescriptions filled for these addictive drugs would allow for a chance to intervene with high risk users and save lives.
One critical tool our state can deploy to combat the misuse of opioids is the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP). Missouri remains the only state in the entire country without a statewide PDMP, and I will support efforts to finally pass this legislation for our citizens.
Local Control
Government works best when it is closer to the people it serves. I respect the fabric of our local communities and trust them to know best when it comes to overcoming the challenges they face.
In Missouri, we have seen many decisions influenced by special interests, circumventing the will of local communities on local issues by preempting local ordinances with state law or by diluting local opposition to matters by including state-wide votes.
Fiscal Responsibility
I believe in the saying “show me your budget, and I’ll show you your values.” Our state’s budget serves as a moral contract with our citizens. Every year, it is up to the state government to allocate the tax dollars you pay to maintain and improve our quality of living.
But while our schools are underfunded, our healthcare costs are on the rise while our taxes increase, and we’re borrowing money to pay for our crumbling roads and bridges, corporations in Missouri are receiving tax cuts and incentive packages.
We simply should not be handing out money to corporations hoping that prosperity will trickle down. As your state rep, I will be a careful steward of your tax dollars in Jefferson City.
I believe you and your family are the economic drivers of our state. Our budget should reflect that by investing in the things that will improve you and your family’s life, rather than lining the pockets of big businesses.
