DATE: Wednesday, September 17, 1997         TAG: 9709170726

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A5   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: FOCUS: ELECTION '97

DECISION '97

                                            LENGTH:  146 lines

87TH DISTRICT WHY ARE YOU RIGHT FOR THE JOB? THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY CANDIDATES IN SOUTH HAMPTON ROADS' CONTESTED RACES TALK TO CITIZENS.

TODD M. FIORELLA

Born: 7/29/61, Milwaukee

Years living in city/district: 35

Education: University of Virginia bachelor of arts in chemistry; law degree in 1989 from U.Va.

Occupation: Attorney

Party affiliation and official endorsements: Democrat.

Political experience/community service: first run for political office. Member of the Ocean View Knights of Columbus, the Virginia Bar Association, the Norfolk-Portsmouth Bar Association, the Northside Civic League and the local chapter of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Attends Holy Trinity Church.

How citizens can reach you: Phone 461-2500; Fax 461-2341

Raised in the house in which I presently live and now own on Circle Drive in the 87th House District, I share with many of you a lifelong commitment to the betterment of our community. Because of my deep concern about the future and the direction in which we are being led, I am running for this office.

My parents owned my house before me and still live in Ocean View. They raised four children there, and all attended school in Norfolk.

A 1983 graduate of the University of Virginia, I worked for two years as a chemist. I finished law school at U.Va. in 1989.

I am a member of the Knights of Columbus, Council 3548, and the Democratic Social Club in Ocean View. I attended Holy Trinity Church and am a board member of the local chapter for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

As a law student, I worked as a legislative aide in the Virginia General Assembly. A practicing lawyer, I have argued six cases before the Supreme Court of Virginia.

My father never finished college. My mother never finished high school. They insisted, however, on a deep commitment to education. My father worked long hours at a cement plant to give his children the opportunities he never had. Thanks to his hard work, my brother and I became the first children on either side of our families to attend and graduate from college. It is now my turn to give something back.

I am 100 percent committed to improving public education. I will work to increase funding to improve our schools. Similarly, I will vote against any proposal which takes money from public education to pay for charter schools with no accountability.

I will insist that we focus on early childhood education. I will fight to give our teachers the authority to return discipline to the classroom. I will work to provide computers in our classrooms and to make certain that our children have the skills necessary to gain employment in tomorrow's job market.

I know the sacrifices a family makes to send children to college. I will work to keep college tuition affordable so that children from the 87th District with backgrounds similar to mine have the opportunity to make better lives for themselves and their families.

Having worked within the legal system, I know its strengths and shortcomings. I am committed to drafting legislation that provides stern sentencing for those found guilty of crimes without jeopardizing principles of fair and equal justice.

I will fight to rejuvenate Ocean View, to make our beaches and streets safe for our children. I will work to build a residential community that decreases our tax burden.

I love and respect my home. I want my children to do so. I will sponsor and support legislation that protects the Chesapeake Bay by punishing those who pollute its water.

I ask for your help and vote.

THELMA W. DRAKE

Born: 11/20/49, Elyria, Ohio

Years living in city/district: 30 years in Norfolk, in Bay View/ Ocean View area since 1972

Education: High school. Graduate, the Realtor Institute

Occupation: Realtor

Party affiliation and official endorsements: Republican; Endorsed by Virginia Association of Realtors.

Political experience/community service: Elected to Virginia's House of Delegates in 1995, served on committees of Labor & Commerce, Transportation and Claims. Former member Virginia Housing and Community Development Board; former member Mayor's Task Force in Ocean View; former secretary of Ocean View Coordinating Committee; volunteer for Lee's Friends, a cancer victim support group; former president Granby High School PTA; recipient of Virginia Crime Prevention Association's citizen of the year award; a 1997 recipient of the Outstanding Professional Women of Hampton Roads award. Member of Tidewater Association of Realtors' Million Dollar Club.

How citizens can reach you: 588-8787; Fax 588-3296.

As fellow Virginians, we are facing many important decisions in the upcoming fall elections. There will be much debate regarding the future direction of our great commonwealth.

I have been honored to serve as your delegate this past term and respectfully submit my record to the voters of the 87th District. I take great satisfaction in the knowledge that I have kept 100 percent of my campaign pledges to you. After careful consideration, I am seeking to serve another term as your delegate and seek your support for the following reasons:

After a lifetime of community service, I answered the call from friends, neighbors and community activists to seek public office. I would like to emphasize that I have continuously lived, worked and been actively involved in our community for over 20 years, long before I even considered seeking office. With the efforts of folks throughout our neighborhoods, we made history and defeated a 15-year incumbent by a wide margin in 1995.

I was sworn in as your delegate to the Virginia House of Delegates in January 1996, and have worked with Gov. Allen and like-minded members of the General Assembly from both parties to make Virginia a better place to live, work and raise a family.

While I am also an accomplished real estate professional, I feel it is my commitment to civic affairs that most qualify me to serve as your delegate. Our founding fathers had the foresight to provide for a citizen legislature.

Prior to my election, all five of the Norfolk delegates were lawyers. Working to help young families to realize the American dream of home ownership, I am keenly aware of key community concerns regarding schools and education, crime and safety, and economic development and taxation. I believe a greater diversity of common sense legislators are better suited to address these concerns.

As a parent (and now grandparent) and the former president of the Granby High School PTA, education remains a top priority to me. I voted to increase education spending by $1 billion, raise teacher and college professor salaries, adopt rigorous academic standards and implement the testing of students to measure achievement.

As the co-founder of the Northside Block Security Program, I know that our neighborhoods can only be enjoyed if they are safe and free of violent criminals. I commend our local city officials in joining me in our war against prostitution and drugs. Together, we are making progress in taking back our neighborhoods.

Walking on the beach each morning, the Chesapeake Bay reminds me how important it is to temper economic development with environmental preservation. I am committed to preserving all of Virginia's precious natural resources. Having made our home here in Ocean View with family, I will remain vigilant over its rebirth.

There is still much to be done and my resolve and commitment remain strong. Honest change that brings about true reform takes time. I hope I have earned your trust and can count on your vote this November. ILLUSTRATION: Photos

Todd M. Fiorella

Thelma Drake KEYWORDS: ELECTION VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES RACE

VIRGINIA 87TH DISTRICT PROFILE CANDIDATES

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