HILLSDALE, Mich. — Rondee Butcher is throwing her hat in the ring to become the city of Hillsdale’s next mayor. She’s never ran for office, until now.
Butcher grew up in Hillsdale and has lived in the county for 33 years.
She credits running a Facebook page, the Hillsdale Information Station, as her motivation to run for office.
“I started getting really involved in my community, and people kept coming to me through my page saying, Rondee you should run for mayor,” she said.
And if she wins that race, Butcher says fixing the roads would be a high priority
“Some of them are deplorable,” she said. “They would be better off of if they were gravel. Where’s all of our money going? Why are we allowing special assessments, and why are the people not able to vote on those things, those assessments. I think the people should have a say. They’re the ones who are going to have to pay the extra tax money for the next 10 years to get their street fixed. We have 50 people in the area. That puts a great dent in the cost, but you’re hitting the taxpayers twice, and they’re already fighting to feed their families.”
She sees homelessness as a problem in the community.
“I think the people who are running the warming center right now are doing a phenomenal job, and they are really concerned about maybe trying to make something year-round because our homeless centers are only open in the winter months,” she said. “That doesn’t mean they don’t want to help, but we just don’t have the resources to do it.”
While she looks forward to the future, some of the focus remains on her past.
In 2006, Butcher was found guilty of conspiracy to commit retail fraud and sentenced to probation.
Ten years later, she was sentenced to nine months in jail in another retail fraud case. Butcher says back pain had made her addicted to painkillers and describes it as a bad period in her life.
“I can tell you that made me who I am today,” she said. “My addiction and my past I feel like it has brought me full circle. Nobody is ever proud of their past, you know? I think that people who don’t think that way are people who have never made a mistake and shouldn’t vote for me.”
She hopes residents concerned about her past could give her a chance.
“Give me a chance. Let me show you,” she said. “Having a child in my life and trying to lead by example and show him how you don’t stop, you don’t give up. I think that’s important than listening to somebody cut someone else down because they have a past.”
Butcher will be facing off against incumbent Mayor Adam Stockford in the general election.
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