My name is Andrew Hamilton and I want to start a conversation

(Pictured is our amazing group of S.T.A.R.S - from last week's annual recognition event - who volunteered over $350,000 of labor to our Sheriff’s Department in 2017 along with Mayor Scott Voigts, Councilman Dwight Robinson and myself)

This is my first article on the Patch, so please be understanding if I don’t have all of the kinks worked out.

Hello, my name is Andrew Hamilton and yes, there is a recall election against me. Maybe I could have started writing something like this sooner, but hindsight is 20/20, right?

Maybe part of the reason is that I am a full-time professional. I am married to a fabulous woman, Jill and we are parents to 2 amazing girls (one in her teens and another who is almost there). I am quite busy with work and raising a family. But I have a passion for giving back to our community, which is why I applied to be on the Planning Commission and then run for City Council. It sure wasn’t the minimal pay! (which is just a token for the hours and expenses that I devote to you and my fellow residents).

All of us on the council are navigating through different stages of life. I believe a full-time professional like myself with a family provides a unique perspective to the city council, as does a mother of two young children (Mayor Pro Tem Leah Basile), an entrepreneur (Councilman Dwight Robinson), and another person who is an employee (Mayor Scott Voigts). This is addition to retired Councilman James Gardner who devotes much time to his position and politicking.

One quick thing about the recall – I thought about responding to each of the allegations against me; however, maybe responding to allegations gives more validity to them? This is the main reason why I repeated “Falsehoods, Whoppers, Lies, Distortions, Denigration, Untruths, Fabrications, Dishonesty” so many times. Another may have been that during the first recall in 2016, I provided a thorough response and nobody ever said a thing to me about it. This time, I have heard opinions from more than a handful of people. And I also provided another response in the election materials.

I am committed to writing a few posts like this over the next few weeks, so stay tuned and I appreciate you listening to my thoughts.

ABOUT ME

I grew up in a small town with my two amazing parents and sister (“amazing” is meant to describe my sister, too.). The big takeaways from the childhood was I was blessed to have an amazing family (my immediate family, 4 grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins) and we spent so many holidays, birthdays and other events together. I have been truly blessed. Spending time on my grandparents’ farm and spending Christmas together are great memories. I can’t forget – my grandmother’s chocolate roll was to die for!

Another is my parents’ sacrificial love. My dad worked a late schedule and my mom worked as a teacher to provide for a private education in both high school and college. I can never thank them for their hard work to get me the absolute best education I could have ever imagined.

I also appreciate my parent’s faith in Jesus Christ, which I accepted and made into my own.

My parents also encouraged my interest in math, which helped me chose “Accounting” as a major in college. It also helped that I had two uncles who were Certified Public Accountants (CPA’s).

I spent parts of two school recesses in high school volunteering in both Mexico and Ecuador to help those lack the necessities that I and most Americans enjoy every day. I still remember the drive back home from the airport after my second trip and being amazed at seeing all of the cars (not the mode of transportation to the countries I visited)!

I married my wife, Jill, over 20 years ago while attending First Evangelical Free Church of Fullerton. We thoroughly enjoy spending time with our two girls and are members at Saddleback Church. Also, I am a proud soccer and volleyball dad.

ABOUT LAKE FOREST

Having lived in Lake Forest since the mid-2000’s, I still pinch myself about the greatness of our city. And it really starts with our neighbors and residents. We have owned two different houses and the neighbors at each are unlike any where we have lived before. And it isn’t just the neighbors: it is our friends from Lake Forest Elementary, Saddleback Church, AYSO soccer, Saddleback Valley Volleyball Club, A4 Volleyball, South Slammers Soccer, civic organizations, etc. We really have the best PEOPLE here in Lake Forest.

And that is why I wanted to give back by being on the city council. I wanted to use my CPA, CFO, and small-business owner experience to help lead our city. Service seems to have been instilled in me as a child with an “attitude of gratitude” and service to others.

There are other great things about our city that I am very grateful. We enjoy the parks close to our house, the close proximity (but not too close) of shopping and restaurants – all which make our city so great. I also have to express my appreciation to the staff and elected officials from the past (both county and city) who designed and molded Lake Forest. I know, I know – it wasn’t perfectly designed. But they did so many great things.

Next, I want to continue the conversation. I hope you will continue reading.

Andrew