Kings Mountain woman running for House seat

Jennifer Childers is a long-time resident of Kings Mountain and an advocate for the vulnerable and those with disabilities. She is also running against Tim Moore, who is finishing his third term as the presiding officer of the North Carolina House of Representatives.

Moore has represented Cleveland County for many years, but Childers feels she can offer fresh perspectives and creative new ideas.

Moore is a Republican and Childers is Democrat.

Childers said she was born and raised in Sarasota, Florida, and has been in the nursing field for 30 years.

In high school she was part of the pro-life and folk club and became interested in social justice issues and serving and protecting people with developmental disabilities.

"I got to realize, this is a vulnerable population," she said. "They are very vulnerable to abuse."

Childers became a volunteer for the Guardian Ad Litem program in Florida, which advocates for abused and neglected children going through the court system, and was also involved in parenting classes aimed at rebuilding families. Eventually, she met and married her husband, Rusty, who is a Shelby native and they had a son, James.

The family moved to Cleveland County, and Childers quickly became active in the community.

When she recently had someone ask her if she was interested in politics, she decided to run for a seat with the House of Representatives.

Childers, who is a registered behavioral technician and a certified peer support specialist for Monarch, said when she looked up the job description for a representative, it was closely aligned to her work in peer support. She said it is all about meeting and getting to know people and finding out their needs.

She said she has seen how clients were affected when the proposed Medicaid expansion didn't go through, and it is something she is passionate about.

Childers said she feels like she will provide a "breath of fresh air."

"I won't be playing a tug of war with different personality types," she said. "I think I'm the person who gets to the heart of the matter."

Childers is passionate about improving mental health care and increasing teacher compensation. Addressing poverty and food insecurities in the county are also high on her list of priorities.

"That's an issue I'm passionate about," Childers said. "Twenty percent of our kids are hungry."

She said both parties need to come together now more than ever.

"This pandemic has knocked us on our ear," she said. "Some businesses are not bouncing back. It would have been helpful to have that Medicaid expansion."

Both parties need to work together, she said, and work for the people of North Carolina in the aftermath of COVID-19.

Childers said she is an advocate for looking into new and clean energy sources and the potential for growing new crops in the region, including medical marijuana.

"We need some out of the box creative ideas," she said.

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