I'm Zeke and welcome to the Zekely podcast. Let's talk, Pennsylvania

The guest I have today is a scientist, businesswoman, and civic leader who currently resides in Chester County, Pennsylvania. A member of her local Democratic Party's executive committee, she has now chosen to run for mayor of Downingtown . Thank you so much for being here. Erica Deuso.

For years, I’ve knocked thousands of doors all over Pennsylvania and poured my heart and soul into supporting candidates and causes that make a difference—from local school board races to national elections. The personal is political, and I take every election in Pennsylvania personally.

Where the mainstream media has failed you, I will give you truth and independence. You’ll hear from Democratic leaders, candidates, and change-makers who are working to improve the health of the Commonwealth, and it won’t be boring as hell.

No matter where you are, I’ll meet you with hope and a plan to make your community better one day at a time. Welcome to the Zekely Podcast. Let’s talk Pennsylvania.

Thank you for having me and I feel really welcome here and I'm really excited to talk with you about this race.

Absolutely. Is this your first time being on a podcast?

This is my first time being on a podcast.

well, I'm really happy that it's on the Zekely podcast. very honored. I'm very honored and we're gonna have a great time, learn all about you and your campaign. So let's get right into it, okay?

Me too. Me too.

Sounds great.

you went to Drexel University and then you became a research assistant in Denmark. So what was that experience like abroad?

It was great. You know, I know we're both strong Democrats and it was one of the things that really helped develop who I am in politics. While I was living over there, I got injured. It's funny, I got hit by a car while I was riding a bicycle and the driver of the car was an American. ⁓

wow.

So here I am an American in Denmark, get hit by a car driven by an American. ⁓ But my entire bill, total bill for my healthcare for that was $30 or the equivalent of $30. So, you know, here in the US that probably would have been thousands upon thousands of dollars that I would have had to pay. So to know that there was that social safety net for me really helped.

Mm-hmm.

of the odds.

Mm-hmm, definitely.

helped me, to, really design my political stances.

And then, you know, just seeing the world, seeing a multicultural area with people from all around Europe, Africa, Asia coming together for a common goal in a great town. I don't think I would trade that for anything because that really made me part of who I am today.

Well, I've never been to Denmark. I want to go there someday. So if I ever go, can you give me my own personal itinerary?

I could, could. Copenhagen is a very walkable city. And do you like to ski at all?

my gosh, I've only skied once in my life and I almost broke my knee and that was the last time I ever went skiing.

Well, if you ever fancy a try at skiing again, there's a small city called Arhus and they

huh.

Okay.

an incinerator plant that generates electricity and they created a ski resort out of that. You get on a lift, it brings you up to the top of the building and then they installed year-round ski

Mm-hmm.

Okay, interesting.

grass that you can ski down throughout the year and in the wintertime they put snow on it and you can literally ski down this environmentally friendly incinerator that is making electricity at the same time as you're skiing down it. yeah they have beer everywhere.

Okay, well, do they have a beer there? Okay, I might just watch people ski and have

the beer. Just knowing myself, I'm probably not gonna go skiing, but I'll enjoy watching the people do it.

Mm-hmm.

So I heard a rumor that you're into micro brewing.

I started brewing at the commercial level

when I was doing grad work in Copenhagen, Denmark.

So I kept it as a hobby and I've been doing it ever since.

great well we're gonna play a game where it's called brew you okay a game where we are going to craft your beer personality all right

Okay.

So we're going to start with the base style, okay, your personality foundation. So are you a lager, like a smooth and classic, an IPA, bold and unapologetic, stout, deep, dark and mysterious, a sour, quirky and surprising, or a saison, earthy and adventurous?

I think that I would be a lager

lager, smooth and classic. All right. All right, we have our base. Let's move on to flavor note. Okay, little life spice. Are you citrus, zesty energy, coffee, gritty focus, pine, nature lover, chili, fiery and passionate, or vanilla? Comfort and connection.

Smooth and classic, exactly.

What was the third one again? I think I'll have to go with pine. You know, I'm an avid outdoors person. I like hiking. You know, I grew up in Vermont, so the outdoors is in my blood. So pine, definitely it.

Third one was Pine, a nature lover. Pine.

Mm-hmm.

Perfect. I like a nice piney beer as well. So we're on the same page. All right, let's do ABV, alcohol by vibes. All right, are you low ABV, chill and subtle, medium, balanced and grounded, or high, intense and powerful?

Okay.

I'd say medium, balanced and grounded. You know, I like to have fun, but at the same time I'm responsible.

medium. All right that sounds good yeah.

I like it. like it. All How about hops level? How bitter are you? Are you a light bitterness? You let things go Medium bitterness depends on the day or high bitterness you have thoughts and people are going to hear them

Well, it really depends on the day but you know, I like to think that I can let things go when when they come at me depends on on who's saying it or what's going on in my life, but I I like to think that I'm pretty easygoing

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm. ⁓

Alright, we'll say medium, light to medium bitterness.

Light to medium. Yeah, that sounds about right.

Alright sounds good. Alright the last thing we're gonna do is your special add-in. Okay your life ingredient. Is it glitter, flashy personality, smoke, past struggles, now flavor, honey, sweet soul, oak aging, wisdom over time, or wild yeast? You never know what you'll do next.

Well being here in Downingtown Town and having fell in love with Victory Brewing Company here, there's a there's a particular beer called Wild Devil where they use a wild strain of yeast to make a really delicious beer. So I'm gonna have to go with the the wild yeast.

huh.

huh.

The wild

yeast, perfect. All now we have to name

brew personality. So what would you name your brew? Other than your name, obviously, add some spice to it.

think it would be an IPL you know and IPL stands

IPL.

intellectual political lager

I love it. I love it. Intellectual political lager Well, thank you for brewing you on the Zekely podcast. Thank you, Erica.

Thank you.

Well, like you said before, you used to live in Vermont, but you settled in Downingtown. So what made you decide to choose this area of Pennsylvania?

Yes.

So I moved to central Pennsylvania with my parents when I was 12. My dad got a job in Westminster, Maryland, and I lived in Hanover, Pennsylvania. You may know it for the pretzels and the potato chips. But what really made me want to get out of central Pennsylvania was in the first two weeks we were living there, we saw an article in our local newspaper where a

Okay.

flaming cross was thrown onto a black family's yard. And that being from Vermont, we had never seen that. We've never been, you know, really put into that that sort of racism fear, a sphere that we have. I felt I needed to get out of there. And that's what how I made it to Drexel for my undergrad. ⁓ I decided I needed somewhere bigger, something more worldly, where I could meet people from around the world, which I did. ⁓

Gotcha.

Mm-hmm.

And so when I came back from Denmark, I needed some place to live and this was the first place that I decided to come look. I found my house. I've been here ever since.

Well, I'm glad you could find a safe space in Pennsylvania and

I'm sure is happy to have you there.

Yeah, yeah, mean, everybody, everybody that I meet, it's, it's always a smile and a wave, stopping to talk with somebody in the park while I'm walking my dog, or simply just, you know, helping somebody out down the street, just a good neighbor action. You know, it's a great place to live.

Mm-hmm.

sounds like it well I don't know why but when I hear the name Downingtown it makes me think of Bridgerton I don't know why just the name Downingtown and it sounds like it'd be a town in the show Bridgerton you've seen the show Bridgerton you've heard about the show Bridgerton

have I haven't seen it seen it but I've heard of it

OK,

I I watched it kind of behind my wife watching it, you know, binging it on Netflix, and the accents kind of, you know, grab you, know, Bridgerton! You know, and all the fancy, so I thought we'd play a game, okay? What would you do game, but we have to talk in the accents of the time, okay? Yeah, I mean...

Okay.

I will

try.

I

mean, you are obviously going be Madame Deuso okay, and I'm going to be Lord Tayler okay, but we have to speak in the accents, okay? Bridgerton! Okay, so your very best accent, okay? So I guess I have to sound like proper, okay? Lord Tayler your very best acquaintance tells you that you've been texting their ex again, months after cheating caused the original breakup. How would you approach your friend over this situation, Madame Deuso?!

Okay?

My dear, I... I don't know what it possibly could be that you have been seeing, but it would be completely... misreading the situation. Misjudging the situation to think that I would have anything to do with that scoundrel.

Yes, madam.

Misreading? Madam?

Hmph! Preposterous, you might say.

Preposterous.

preposterous.

Moving on. A fling from years ago slides into your DMs, madam. And when you look him up online, you discover he's married with children. What is your plan, madam? Ignore or interfere? Bridgerton, Downingtown.

I believe that the first thing I would do is to tell my beloved husband of this wretched encounter with somebody from my distant past. And then I would leave it to him to deal with the situation as it should be, as he is my sworn protector. Proper.

Yes, ma'am.

Educate me.

Mmm.

Hmm?

That sounds proper. Very proper, madam.

Last one, final one. Your neighbor in Downingtown goes through a stretching routine every morning before work. But they do it in the nude, in view of your kitchen window. Furthermore, your neighbor occasionally winks at you during their sessions. How should this situation be managed, What will the town say? What will the town say?

Scandalous. Absolutely scandalous. Especially when I post a video of that stretching routine on the internet.

I should say so. I should say so.

Hmm. Hmm.

Is it as a reel I might say, a reel

A real reel

Which would get thousands of

Maybe tens of thousands.

What should you do, madam?

Dare I say you- Dare I say you wink back?

Wink back with a knowing smile.

This went off the rails, but I loved it. Thank you for... I know, I think, I don't even know what I sounded like. I don't know. I sounded like a constipated old man, but you sounded a lot better. Thank you for playing, thank you for playing a Downingtown spin-off of Bridgerton. Thank you very much. Bridgerton!

parable at accents.

your tin.

why did you decide to run for mayor?

Well, I've lived in Downingtown Town

Mm-hmm.

I definitely wanted to put down my roots here. And since this has been such a good neighbor community, I feel like I want to give back to the community and lead this community into the future.

Mm.

that seems to be a common thread. Politically anyway, but certainly people running for mayor, they want to give back to their community that they love so much. So that makes a lot of sense. And how can people help with your campaign?

Mm-hmm.

Right.

We're coming down to the wire here. We're gonna have a bunch of people out knocking doors reminding people it's a get out the vote We need people to work the polls here in Downingtown . Volunteer an hour here an hour there helps us get out the vote and really make sure we're the best educated electorate out there.

picking the right person.

website?

My website is ericadeuso.com.

May 20th is the primary Pennsylvania. So you will have the ability to elect mayors all over Pennsylvania. And I can't vote for Erica, but if you live in Downingtown I hope you vote for her.

Thank

Me too.

Well, we're going to play a game called Mayor May I? Where I'm going to ask you some questions and you're going to tell me if you have those powers as mayor. Okay. So mayor, may I replace all the parking meters with snack dispensers?

I think that would fall under public works. So I don't think I'd have that ability. I know, I know.

Okay.

That's a bummer.

I mean, they're... I know. I mean, these days they're having all the apps where, you you just put a number in your phone and they just have the old parking meters kind of standing there. I figure why not repurpose them to candy dispensers? I feel like that'd be a great thing for...

I'd rather jump out of my car and get a soda than have to pay a meter.

Mm-hmm.

I think that would be too.

Just put a pin in it, okay? You know,

just put a pin in that one. I think it's a good idea. All right, how about, may or may I implement a town-wide composting program?

Pinned.

It's funny you should say that we we we're actually here in Downingtown we just signed up to implement a new composting program here in town. So that would fall under borough council ⁓ to actually bring it in but the mayor does have have the ability to speak up during borough council sessions and say whether they support it or they don't.

Okay.

And I totally support that. I compost here at home. I'm an avid gardener. know, some of the stuff I garden goes right back into my beer.

Mm-hmm.

mayor may I request all councilmembers to communicate only in song during board meetings?

I wish that would be great. It be like a musical. ⁓

Yeah, I

think you get a lot more viewers that way to be honest and participants. Yeah

Yeah, yeah, you would.

I can't command anybody to do anything as mayor. You know, but what I could do is try to talk to three of the people on borough council to make that a rule and then I could break the tie as mayor.

Mm-hmm.

there you go. Perfect. would personally tune into your board meetings if they were singing all the different topics. So I look forward to that. Break that tie. Break that tie, Erica. All right, here's the last one. May or may I have more benches around town so my dear mother can rest while she's out shopping?

Mm-hmm.

Breaking it.

You know I was thinking about that and while I can't authorize buying the benches I love working with my hands. I love being able to build furniture, build things, so I'd love to be able to build some more benches and put them around town here and I don't think anybody would really complain if some new benches popped up.

Mm-hmm.

My mother certainly wouldn't. Well, thank you for playing Mayor May I?

Now.

So tell me about your three S's that you want to accomplish as mayor.

So the reason why I started with S's, my job right now has to do with something called Lean Six Sigma. It's all about process improvement, doing more with less, resource adjustment, doing what Doge should be doing, but doing it in corporate America.

Mm-hmm.

Okay.

So I thought of Downingtown and I thought, well, what could I have with S?

So I thought of it and I found a safe, sustainable, and strong. So safe is all about public safety and that is the mayor's only real job here in town is to direct the police department fire emergency services, work with them to determine what they need, their equipment needs, their staffing needs, and work with the chief of police to help meet the need. But also I want to look at a safe downtown in terms of mental health.

but not just for the people here, but we want to focus on the emergency responders as well. Want to make sure we have the most healthy, both mentally and physically, first responders here in town.

you

We also want to focus on domestic violence. That is something that is picking up here in Chester County So we want to focus on that and I'm looking at creating a program called Downingtown Safe With Downingtown Town Safe we want to take people who may be the victim of domestic abuse domestic violence and set up a program where

they can be taken out of that house, given a hotel room for a night at no fee. And then the next day have resources come from the county where they can they can meet with a lawyer or meet with law enforcement to determine what the next step is to get out of that bad situation. The second S is sustainable. Downingtown is it's right here on the Brandywine Creek.

And if you remember Hurricane Ida, we were some of the worst hit places right here in town. And we suffered a very large loss. So we want to make sure that we have environmental resilience for our town. We also want to look at how we can have housing sustainability. Housing here in downtown has exploded both development and cost.

Yeah.

So we want to look at ways to make it more affordable here for people in town and sustain the people that we have and attract new people. And strong is all about our

Good Neighbor traditions that we have here. We have so many festivals and parades and things that people from all around come to come to see. Good Neighbor Day is on the 4th of July. We have a 5k. We have activities, rides, food, vendors, music, and then at the end of the night, a giant fireworks display here on July 4th. We have our Fall Fest.

20,000 people descend on our town to come out to our Fall Fest every year.

All these things that bring us together as a community. I want to focus on that, expand it so that kids today can grow up and bring their own kids back here and still enjoy them for generations to come.

Safety, sustainability, and strong traditions. It really sounds like you want to focus on bringing people together and keeping everyone safe. Those are great. I love the Deuso three S's. I hope you get to implement all of them.

I hope so too

I think it's great because you have actually earned key endorsements from your local Democratic Party. The outgoing mayor is endorsing you as well. I how does it feel to know that you have the support of the party and the person currently serving in office?

Mm-hmm.

it means everything. You know the fact that I have the trust of the Democratic Party and not just here in Downingtown Town but you know I have friends and I've made acquaintances and friends from around the county now so I'm I'm friends with people in Landonburg and I'm friends with people all the way up going towards Douglasville and it's all because I wrote my name down on a little piece of paper and

and then running for borough council. And then when Josh Maxwell became county commissioner, stepping up and becoming the mayor and then winning re-election unopposed, no one even dared to run against him because he's that popular in town. So the fact that he's seen in me what he saw in himself, somebody who's willing to step up and do what needs to be done to make this town better.

That means a lot.

That's a big deal. And for everyone who's stepping into the voting booth on May 20th, or if you have your mail-in ballot, we should all be voting for the democratically endorsed candidates. And I'm so happy for you that you are the democratically endorsed candidate for mayor. And I can't vote for you, as I said, but I'm hoping that everyone does vote for you. Because if you are being endorsed by the Democratic Party, that means you've been vetted and you will represent democratic values.

Yeah, I can tell you, I had so many questions from people. know, people that I already considered friends because I'm a committee person along with them. But, you know, they didn't treat me like I was, I was special. They wanted to know what are you going to do for the town? What we are, what, you know, how would you vote on this? How would you, how would you deal with this situation? And, you know, just to see them not treat me special.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

but

to actually come out and ask me questions, send me emails, me a call just to find out how I would do that, it truly is a vetting. A lot of people think, oh, it's just a popularity contest. No, no, it is truly one of the hardest things you have to do

That means a lot that these people did their due diligence and found me to be the best candidate.

Absolutely, and if you weren't the best you wouldn't be endorsed by the Democratic Party, so well deserved

Exactly.

I know a hobby of yours is Astrophotography, correct? Well, have you traveled to certain places around the country or world to capture a special event in your past?

Mm-hmm. Correct.

I have. You know, like I said, I'm from Vermont. So last April, I traveled to Vermont for the total solar eclipse I went out to this tiny

huh, yep.

brewery out in the middle of the islands in Lake Champlain in Vermont, closest to the center of the the totality. And a little little place called Kramer and Kin Brewing Company. set up my camera, basically tracked the Sun through every single step, took one photo every minute.

Okay.

for three hours and 27 minutes and was able to capture the sun going from total full all the way through, got the diamond ring with a little tiny bit of sun still peeking through, got the totality and then I got the rest of the eclipse as it was coming back.

huh.

That's so cool. My son drove up with his friend. Well, I guess he drove up with his parents friend and saw the eclipse and he said it was so cool. He really, really enjoyed it. So you were probably in close proximity to each other. I think he also was in Vermont, but that's great. I'd love to see the picture sometime.

Right

Yeah, I will I'll shoot you a picture of him so you can see

Yeah,

that's so cool. Well, we're gonna play a game called Name That Nebula. Okay, I'm going to give you some names and you're gonna tell me is that a real name or is it fake? Okay, so the first one is Unicorn Plume Nebula. Is that real or is it fake?

Okay.

Okay.

sure I'll go with that actually being a nebula. I know the horse head nebula so

It's fake. Yeah, that's not real. There you

go. That's not a real one. All here's another one. Carina Nebula.

I know that one is real.

It is real. And you know, I thought at first it was Karina because it's spelled C-A-R-I-N-A but it's pronounced Karina. But you know, when I think Karina, it's in the trachea, right? Like at the end of the trachea is the Karina, the splitting.

Mm-hmm.

How about the tarantula nebula?

I that there's a nebula, it's like an arachnid or arachno nebula. I don't know about the tarantula nebula, but I'll just say it's real.

Mm-hmm.

It is real. You got that one right too. Very good. How about the Silver Fang Nebula?

Now that's one I've never heard of, so I'm going to say that one's fake.

It is fake. Very good. Alright, here's the last one. How about the Kraken Nebula?

that sounds like something somebody who loves D &D would name and they're typically nerds. So I'm going to say that's real.

That's fake. I

know, I had some fun making some of these, but you got some of them, that's pretty good. Name...

Yeah, my husband

plays role playing games. So I've been I've been sucked into some of their their their topics that they play on.

Uh-huh.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah. Well, thank you for playing Name That Nebula.

when you prevail in the upcoming primary election on May 20th and defeat your Republican opponent in November, you will be the first ever trans person elected as mayor in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. And I just have to say, you know, what a significant achievement that will be for you. You know, representation matters, and I can only imagine that there are people out there in the trans

who don't have the ability to be so visible that are just grateful for what you are doing. So I can only imagine this means a lot to you.

It does, it does, and

Being the first at anything, screams, notoriety you know, people coming to you and saying how, how brave you are to break barriers and things like that. but ⁓ you know,

people I consider friends also broke ceilings. Danica Rome down in Virginia

That's right.

My friend Brianna Tittone out in Colorado and of course Sarah McBride.

But the one thing that everybody has in common is that we're not doing this to break the barriers. just we're doing this because we love our constituents. We love the people that we're representing and we just happen to be trans. And that's the way we try to live our lives. You know, I'm just like everybody else, just with a slightly different

You bring so much to the table for your town. But I just do want to showcase the fact that you are doing something as a first in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. And that does mean something to a lot of people. Not just in the Commonwealth, but all over the country.

Mm-hmm.

I've heard from so many people, parents, young trans people, people who see this as somebody that they need to show their children. Because even if their children aren't trans, it's somebody that is taking a step, doing something that nobody has ever done before. They don't know what's going to happen. It's scary.

you're facing a lot of obstacles all the way from from the federal government from Donald Trump all the way down and you know I don't know what's going to happen tomorrow you know nobody does and I think that's part of the scary thing with this administration nobody knows what's coming tomorrow but we're going to be there I'll be standing up to it and I'll be hopefully representing my entire community here

in in Downingtown in Chester County, and in Pennsylvania.

I hope that for you too, and I am very grateful that you are running

we're gonna play another game, Pride Parade Playlist, In honor of Pride Month coming up soon in June, okay? So I have three situations. You're gonna give me a little bit of music, okay? So you just got elected mayor. What song plays that you step up on the...

Okay.

you

Okay.

Lady Gaga, born this way.

⁓ I just I kind of thought that was gonna come out of your mouth. So that's good. All right, how about now you're voguing past City Hall? with your earbuds in what's what's playing in your earbuds?

Mmm.

to go.

Hot to go. Okay.

Hot to go or Pink Pony Club?

Yeah, Pink Pony Club is good. I like that one. That's fun. Okay, Chapel Rowan. Very nice. Chapel Rowan, All right, last one. What song is playing at your first ribbon cutting ceremony?

Yeah, you know, everybody loves Chapel Run.

When you have all those benches set up that you've been cutting in your backyard and you're unveiling all of them to the town, what's playing as you cut that ribbon.

You know what? I'm the mayor. I'm the first trans woman mayor in Pennsylvania. So I'm going to go with Whitney Houston. I'm every woman.

You cannot go wrong with the late and great Whitney Houston You cannot Perfect. I love each of your choices Well, I'm excited for pride month coming up in a couple weeks. So we'll have a lot of fun together

No, you cannot.

Hopefully you'll be up in Phoenixville at Chester County Pride Fest.

I, you know, I've heard that that is one of the best ones in Pennsylvania. I don't want to offend anybody who's listening or watching, but I've heard very good things about that Pride Festival, so I might just cross paths with you.

Save a spot for me. Save a spot for me Erica

That would be great. I'll definitely be there.

I will do that.

Mm-hmm.

Great question. So flooding here in Downingtown it just isn't in the borough.

when you look at the actual causes of flooding, it's typically what happens downstream from us. So there are two dams and two bridges down near Chadsford and Wilmington that are the majority of the backlog for flooding. So when all this water cascades down the Brandywine, it hits these dams, it starts backing up, but then the water in Downingtown has nowhere to go.

Okay.

and then starts spilling its banks and that's how we get flooding.

Are there things we can do in Downingtown ? Yes, there's definitely things. Our Lancaster Avenue bridge here, it needs to be repaired. There's a backlog of sand and silt underneath that. We need to remove that, keep the water flowing a little bit better. Our Manor Avenue bridge acts like a dam, so when the water raises above a certain level, it acts as a dam and pushes all the stuff back.

Mm-hmm.

But the biggest concerns...

are downstream. So if you look at the Brandywine Conservancy's flood plan, they said that if we just fix the things here in Downington flooding, the flood waters would only go down about 0.7 feet. However, if we fix the things that happened downstream in Chads Ford and Wilmington, our flood levels here would go down by three feet. So, you know, by just focusing on here in Downington,

wow, okay.

We aren't going to get nearly as much relief as we would if we worked together and tried to attack the things that really form the bottlenecks for the water. know, flooding does not care where the border of your town is. It's going to happen north of you. It's going to happen south of you. So we have to be looking at the bigger picture of where the flooding actually occurs.

what the root causes are and how do we create countermeasures for those root causes.

And you would work with the City Council essentially to move those forward.

Work with borough council work with our County Commissioners probably work with the state as well. There's going to need to be you know a collaboration between federal state and local officials to actually get things done on this because you know Just just doing the things here in Downingtown is not gonna save save people from flooding

Okay.

I live in one of the lowest lying areas of Downingtown

I had some friends who had to wade out of their house during Ida in water up to their necks and they lost a lot. have a neighbor who lost everything and you know had to literally throw away everything in their house and just start over again and I don't want to see that for people. So it's something that I think about, it's something that I read and I constantly research because I want to make the best decisions.

Sounds like you will when the time comes.

Mm-hmm.

what does your husband think of your Mayoral campaign?

we're we're a great team We work very well together But you know there's days when you know I'm getting home late from work and then I have to grab a bite to eat and then I have to head out to go do campaign stuff or I'm on a meeting At night and I can't

I can't walk the dog for his nightly walk, which is happening as we speak. ⁓ So he's proud. He loves the fact that I'm putting myself out there for the the people of this town. But, you know, he's realizing that he's picking up the slack here.

You

But he loves it. He loves to see me happy. He loves to see me pushed. He often says that he's the anchor.

that keeps me from floating off into space and that that I'm the you know and I'm the the balloon pulling him up from his his anchor so we sort of balance each other out

sounds great. You need to have that support system for each other. you know definitely running for office is a large commitment as you said, fundraisers and door knocking and know campaigning and so it's really great that he's supporting you through this.

Yeah, and he's such a great guy. You know,

I couldn't do it without him. It is. It is. He'll be the first gentleman of Downingtown .

It's all gonna be worth it.

So nice. I'm excited for you both.

Well, this is one of my favorite segments when I talk to people in their towns, a little small business spotlight. So I'll just give you the floor to showcase a small business in Downingtown that you think should get some recognition.

Just

one small business.

with

the caveat that you could name a million, but let's just, for one for now.

Okay, let's go with something that's near and dear to my heart. ⁓ We have a small bakery in town called the Bakers of Buffington. Goes back to the...Buffington? ⁓ But they are great little bakery and my husband and I got married at the Downingtown Country Club.

Mm-hmm.

Buffington? Buffington?

Okay.

here in Downingtown And when you get married there they have a whole package that includes the cake and it can be from a number of different bakeries. And we went with the Bakers of Buffington because it's right here in the center of town. They make amazing cakes, amazing cupcakes. Their cupcakes are out of this world.

They make a Boston cream pie that as somebody born and raised in New England, I know a little bit about Boston cream pie. It makes me feel like I'm back home.

Yeah. Yeah, okay.

That's a lot of stuff. What don't they make there?

I don't think they make croissants, but I can tell you another bakery that does.

Okay, this

place sounds great.

For our wedding we had a lemon raspberry cake. So the yellow cake with lemon and raspberry filling and it was just so good. So good. For late spring, early summer kind of cake it was wonderful.

Sounds so good.

Yeah.

Is there an ice cream shop like right nearby you can pair them together? Ice cream and cake.

Downingtown- Downingtown

Town just got a Handles ice cream, which is just down the street and always, always a line out the door during the summer. So, yeah, we have a- we have a lot of food here. Downingtown good for food. Mm-hmm. Good, good. Come up and visit us.

Yeah, it sounds good. I love it. I'm gonna check it out as soon as I can. I will.

Mm-hmm. I do. well, the

Well, summer is coming. Do you have any summer plans?

First thing we're going to do is right after the primary we are going on a little four day getaway. ⁓ Just as a timeline cleanse for us just to get away and not have to think about the pets. They're going to grandma's house. We're going to go up to the Finger Lakes for a few days over Memorial Day weekend.

Mm-hmm.

Okay.

Nice. ⁓

That'll be nice.

my niece has never been on an airplane.

Okay.

And

so I'm taking her to Lancaster. We're going to jump on this tiny little airline called Southern Airways Express. We're going to take that over to Pittsburgh. We're going to go to her first baseball game. We're to go to the Heinz Ketchup Museum. We're going to go to the zoo and the aviary. You know, just a Aunt Niece weekend for her. And then at the end of summer in August, well,

Yeah.

Okay.

That sounds like so much fun.

In July I'm going to Vermont. That's the Vermont Brewers Fest up there. I go there every year. My cousin owns a brewery in Vermont and so I go up there and help him pour at this event. And then, yeah, yeah, and my parents are going on a cruise for the 50th anniversary this summer. And thank you, I'll relay that to them and so I will be taking care of my niece for the 10 days that they are.

Nice. It's a busy summer.

Mazel Tov.

So, little busy summer, but you know, I like being busy. And then just jump right back into campaigning at the end of August. Exactly, exactly. Gotta finish strong.

Yeah, that sounds like fun though.

Mm-hmm and finish strong into November

What gives you hope?

April 5th, I was asked by Phil Dake, our current mayor here in Downington, to say a few words at the hands-off rally that they were going to have in Westchester.

I'm like, okay, I'm gonna think about this. And I get there and there's 4,000 people there.

And I get up there and it's my time to talk, and I've never talked to anybody, 6,000 people, you know, that's just beyond my thinking. And what gives me hope was right before I went on, little kid, maybe six years old,

Yeah, it's a lot.

you know their little sign said don't take away my teacher and you know I talked to their moms and their mom said that their teacher

not an American citizen.

had got their degree and everything. They were teaching, but they weren't an American citizen. The kid's teacher was afraid that she wasn't gonna be teaching anymore because she was gonna be taken away in the middle of the night. And this kid didn't want their teacher to be taken away. And to see this little kid out there just begging.

that their teacher not be taken away and seeing everybody else from you know the elderly people hoping that their social security and Medicare are there tomorrow to the young the LGBTQ community veterans everybody coming together and making Westchester shut down High Street because there was

there were 6,000 people and they couldn't fit everybody there. That gave me hope because it's hard to make 6,000 people do anything together, let alone come together on one day. But we're rallying, we're out there every weekend doing something, whether it's at a Tesla dealership or whether it's in a town square, whether it's...

Yeah, huh.

just standing out on the side of the road with signs. That gives me hope that people aren't gonna get tired of this. People are just gonna keep going, keep pushing, keep trying to make things better. Mm-hmm.

Hope is a verb and

to see people doing something every day, anything, it is contagious. So I can see how that would give you hope.

And my last question for you is, what plans do you have to get yourself through these next few years?

Well, brewing a lot of beer. ⁓ you know, we have a great little homebrew shop here in town. He's going to get a lot of business. but, but in all seriousness, focusing on the people here in town, focusing on what I can do to make their lives better and, win, lose or draw, you know, I'm, I'm still going to be here for the people.

okay.

I'm gonna be here finding out what I can do to help my neighbors move in the next couple of weeks, going down to restore our roots and helping out with their pollinator garden that they're doing. Or simply just being a good friend when somebody's mother is sick or in the hospital and needing a drive to the hospital.

focusing on the people here is what's going to get me through because all politics is local and ⁓ and you know I'm going to focus on what I can actually control and that's what happens here in this town and what happens to me and my family my friends and all of my good neighbors here in Downingtown .

Amen, amen to that.

Absolutely, we should all focus on what we can control. Absolutely. Yes. Well, Erica, Deuso . Downingtown candidate for mayor, the democratically endorsed candidate, that is the key. And like I said, I can't vote for Erica. I would love to. But certainly,

You should all get out the vote on May 20th. I'm very excited for your campaign, Erica. and I'm rooting for you.

Thank you so much. Thank you for this opportunity to be here and talk a little bit about myself and about the campaign and a little bit about Bridgerton. Bridgerton.

Bridgerton, Downingtown Town.

Buffington. Don't forget Buffington.

It just, Buffington

Bakery. Love it. I had so much fun with you and please keep in touch and I hope that we do run into each other during Pride Fest. I'm gonna look for you.

I hope so and you know I'll be there. I have a table at Pride so you shouldn't be able to miss me. Same. Same.

I can't wait to give you a big hug.

Well thank you so much for joining me here on the Zekely Podcast. Stay hopeful and get involved and until next time, let's keep building a stronger Pennsylvania together.