This Independence Day, our nation marks an extraordinary milestone: 250 years since the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Anniversaries like this invite us to reflect on our history and consider the responsibility we all share in shaping our future.
As I reflect on this anniversary, I keep coming back to the people I have met while serving the 74th Assembly District.
One of the greatest privileges of serving as your Assemblywoman is seeing the good that happens every day, often without recognition. I’ve met veterans who continue serving their communities long after leaving the military, small business owners who create jobs while giving back to the community, nonprofit leaders who dedicate themselves to helping others, and neighbors who simply see a need and step forward. Those experiences remind me that the values we celebrate every Fourth of July are alive in our communities today. I see them alive in our communities every day.
For 250 years, Americans have embraced the responsibilities that come with freedom. They have defended our nation, built businesses, raised families, volunteered in their communities, and worked to leave greater opportunities for those who followed. Our history has included remarkable achievements as well as difficult chapters, yet each generation has continued striving to build a stronger country for the next.
California tells that story in its own way.
Since achieving statehood in 1850, generations have come here believing they could build a better future. They built farms that help feed the nation, launched businesses that have helped make California a driver of our nation’s economy, and built communities where innovation, hard work, and opportunity continue to thrive. Today, California is home to one of the largest economies in the world, but what has always impressed me most isn’t a statistic. It’s the generosity, determination, and resilience of the people who call our state home.
Across the 74th Assembly District, I see those same values reflected in military families who understand sacrifice, family-owned businesses that support local causes, neighbors who volunteer at schools and community organizations, and nonprofits that step forward when families face life’s greatest challenges. Those efforts may not make headlines, but they help define the quality of life we all value.
One organization that reflects those values in an extraordinary way is Semper Fi & America’s Fund, which I was proud to recognize as the 74th Assembly District’s 2026 Nonprofit of the Year.
Founded in 2004 by military spouses, Semper Fi & America’s Fund provides immediate financial assistance and lifelong support to wounded, critically ill, and injured service members, veterans, and their families. The organization helps veterans and their loved ones navigate recovery and life after military service with the support they deserve.
What makes Semper Fi & America’s Fund so deserving of that recognition is not simply the services it provides. It is the example it sets. The organization reminds us that honoring military service does not end when a veteran returns home. It continues in the compassion we show, the support we provide, and the commitment we make to ensuring those who have sacrificed for our country never have to face recovery alone.
Throughout my time in the Legislature, including serving as former Vice Chair of the Assembly Committee on Veterans and Military Affairs, I have worked to elevate the voices of veterans and military families. Through community roundtables and conversations across the district, I have seen firsthand that lasting solutions are built through partnership. Government has an important role to play, but meaningful progress is achieved when nonprofits, businesses, local leaders, and engaged citizens work together.
As we celebrate America’s 250th anniversary, we should take pride in the freedoms secured by generations of brave Americans, the democratic principles that continue to guide our republic, the entrepreneurs and innovators who create opportunity, and the communities that make California such an extraordinary place to call home.
Above all, we should celebrate the people who carry those values forward every day.
America’s next chapter will not be written only in Washington, D.C., or in Sacramento. It will be written by the veteran who continues serving after coming home, the small business owner who invests in the community, the nonprofit that refuses to leave a family behind, and the neighbor who chooses to lend a helping hand.
Those acts may never make history books, but they are woven into the American story. They have sustained our nation for 250 years, and they give me every confidence that America’s best chapters are still ahead.