hello i'm thomas ina olson tommy olson and i'm running for the three year belmont housing authority seat vacated by my friend don becker who moved to wall fam i've lived in belmont with my husband since one nine hundred seventy five we have four children three sons jay ted and met and their daughter juliana all have completed college one with an m b a and all work either in boston or new york i've served diligently on many town committees council on aging housing trust traffic advisory economic development advisory twenty five years ago i founded and continue to produce the pacing part music festival four years ago i began producing the belmont media series belmont rising to end violence toward women the knowledge i have gained from all this fall and here is and gives me the unique understanding of the needs of the belmont community from many aspects i believe i have made a difference serving on the council on aging permits me to see the needs of our seniors and to advocate for support of the facilities that provide for them serving on the housing trust similarly provides me with a deep understanding of the needs of those within our community who may have been priced out of the expensive boston real estate market i originally became aware of housing authority's role when i asked donna hamilton director of the b h a for advice for a senior friend from a neighboring community a friend this friend had been a victim from his affordable housing unit i was shocked he was a senior citizen who did not smoke drink or do noisy chin ups in his apartment he was however a hoarder and because of his depression forgot to pay his rent as a board member of the belmont council on aging i knew that systems could have been put in place to help him retain his housing however the neighboring community summarily evicted him carting off all of his possessions to a storage unit as i went with him from to several legal aid associations we learned it was not possible to change the local ruling it was also not possible to get a response from any other governing body this channel man spent thirteen months on the street living in shelters or his car since he was a veteran and became ill the v a finally got him a bed in the bed for v a hospital he got well and is presently living in a private home of a friend as a citizen with knowledge of what our social programs are intended to do i believe what he went through was a travesty i want to ensure that our belmont housing authority systems provide the support along with the clean safe environment that our citizens need my education and background in business make me uniquely qualified for this role i'm a graduate of the university of albany double majoring in english and history i earned a master of science in reading and special ed from syracuse university and an m b a from babson university presently i am a finra approved financial compliance officer i understand the pressures of work life balance particularly in an upscale town like belmont my life passion as evidenced by my civic actions and my commitments understand underscore how much i care for low income families veterans elderly and the disabled this is why i'm running for the belmont housing authority i know i can make a difference for more information please feel free to call me at six one seven four eight nine to eight to eight please remember to vote for me for