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A Vetted Leader

I've always admired what a strong woman Noreen Kokoruda is. Ever since her days on Madison's Board of Selectmen, she stood out as someone who balanced a strong sense of compassion and intelligence with getting the job done. I've also seen how she has encouraged other women to step up and get involved.

Last year this paper did an article on women leaders in Madison [Dec. 5, "Influx of Female Leaders in Madison Seen as a Sign of Progress"]. For the first time, our town has a woman chairing each of our major elected boards. It was interesting to see how each of these women, regardless of party, cited Noreen as a mentor and someone they look up to. This isn't by accident.

Noreen believes that everyone should be encouraged to get involved in our community and to reach their full potential. She knows this is good for Madison and enriches our community. In Hartford, Noreen is always one of the first to be sought out and included when any women's issue is being discussed, whether it's women in business, violence toward women, childcare, women's health, and so many other critical factors that impact us all but especially women.

Noreen has proposed a bill almost every year since 2012 to provide for paid family sick leave. Her proposals would've provided this much-needed benefit without hurting small businesses and growing the size of government. Unfortunately the paid family sick leave bill that was put forward did just that. It wasn't sustainable, didn't use pretax dollars, and grew Connecticut workforce by potentially 135 new state employees.

Noreen gets it and furthermore gets us. These uncertain times call for certainty in our leaders. Noreen is a strong woman but most important she's a vetted leader ready to continue to serve each of us.

Ruth Doina

Madison