Montgomery Township Committee Candidate Endorsement

Press release from the Somerset County Federation of Democratic Women:

September 25 2020

The Somerset County Federation of Democratic Women is honored to endorse candidate Shelly L. Bell, M.A. for a Township Committee position in the upcoming November 3, 2020 election.

Shelly was born into a family who placed service to others above all else. This strong belief drove her desire to get engaged in her community and led her halfway across the world in her desire to support those who needed help.

As an outreach coordinator for the Citizens Campaign, Shelly worked to educate and train Newark residents providing the tools, resources, and confidence needed to navigate government. She has worked to support women as a trustee for the Fellowship Deaconry and as an active member of the Philanthropic Educational Organization (New Jersey Chapter) that works to help women further their education by providing scholarships, grants, awards, and loans. Shelly also serves as a spiritual growth leader with her church.

Diversity and inclusion are more than words to Shelly. She has actively worked with leaders in Montgomery to embrace differences and to establish programs to celebrate them. She was instrumental in proposing and bringing a virtual Juneteenth event to Montgomery and in helping to increase the participation of women on township boards.

Shelly has traveled the world and has worked to counsel and empower refugee women in Swaziland, South Africa, and Greece to live their best lives. She was also active with the Hope Partners Africa initiative where she provided supplies, fabric, and sewing machines for urban refugee women.

Shelly’s experience in local, county, and state government is quite extensive. Shelly is a member of the Montgomery Township Planning Board, the One Montgomery Committee and she currently serves as ViceChair for the Somerset County Commission on the Status of Women. Her service to New Jersey includes working with Assemblyman Craig Stanley (who was the former chair of the Joint Committee on Public Schools for the NJ Legislature). In her work for the 28th Legislative District, she enhanced dialogue among New Jersey State legislators on “big picture” issues regarding appropriations, tuition, and the impact of legislative decisions on affordability and access.

Shelly is a recipient of the Rutgers School of Social Work New Jersey Family Development Credential, earned her B. A. in Psychology and M.A. in Marriage & Family Counseling from Pillar College. As a trained mental healthcare professional, Shelly is well suited to bring compassion and understanding to the Township Committee.

For these reasons, the Somerset County Federation of Democratic Women endorses Shelly L. Bell, M.A. for the position of Montgomery Township Committeeperson.

This press release was produced by the Somerset County Federation of Democratic Women. The views expressed here are the author’s own.