Email: emilyk@patch.com

Phone: 443-630-6983

Hometown: Perry Hall

Birthday: October 17

Bio
I was born right here in Perry Hall. Some of my favorite childhood memories include going to storytime at the old Perry Hall library and buying syrupy treats from the Busy Bee Snowball Stand on Chapel Road.

After graduating from Perry Hall High School, I studied American culture, English and economics at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. I later attended the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park and was soon published in multiple newspapers, magazines and websites throughout Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Utah, writing about everything from major congressional elections to Mexico's drug war. I built an eclectic and accomplished portfolio of reporting, editing and multimedia.

In April 2010, I was contacted by a recruiter with Patch, a new nationwide media company that vowed to revolutionize hyper-local news.

Patch was already looking for an editor to start a news website in Perry Hall. I jumped at the opportunity and my life hasn't been the same since.

My Beliefs
At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible because human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal their beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. This disclosure is not a license for you to inject your beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that your beliefs are on the record will cause you to be ever mindful to write, report and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you ever see evidence that we failed in this mission, please let us know.

Politics
As a student of political history, it's easy to become disillusioned by the current state of American politics. I can't tell you how many voting ballots I've stared at, just wishing I could write in Abraham Lincoln. In terms of social politics, I am passionate about protecting personal freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights, especially speech, press and religion. I am also a proponent of stronger families and increased civic engagement. Basically, I think the world would be a much better place if parents regularly ate meals with their children and remembered to vote.

Religion
I am a life-long, dedicated member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as the Mormon Church. More information on my beliefs can be found on Mormon.org.

Local Hot-Button Issues
Zoning is, and always has been, a big issue in Perry Hall. A lot of people want to move here (for obvious reasons) and roads, schools and businesses struggle to keep up. Over the past 30 years, Perry Hall has lost much of its farmland and historic buildings to developers, which is another major concern for the community. Maintaining a healthy economic climate is also a concern for local small business owners.