Tim Wood: Ready to Serve!
It’s true that being a teacher and a coach is a demanding job. So is being a parent. Does having important responsibilities in my work and with my family disqualify me from public office? I don’t think so. Most of the citizens of Stafford, like me, are hard-working individuals who give it their all to their families and their work. I can understand that there are tradeoffs with any candidate. I may not be able to make it to all of the photo opportunities for events held during school hours, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be passionately engaged in city business and fully prepared for council meetings. I am coming with a fresh perspective and new ideas on how to improve our city. I’m not doing this for prestige or for the extra income. How I’ve invested my time and talents over the years should be proof enough about where my heart is and how important it is to me to be of service.
Service is a core of my identity and is something I learned from my parents growing up. It was a tenet to the faith that I was reared in. Many of my fondest memories from my childhood and youth are of the times that our family put our needs aside and reached out beyond ourselves to lift others up. Throughout my teens my dad and I made time every month to visit many of the widows in our congregation. I learned at his side the power of just showing up whether it be to help with yardwork, something around the house or just to lend an ear to listen and connect with someone who needed that. Whether it was doing yardwork for the widows on the street, being a secret Santa to the least fortunate members of our congregation, community service with the Boy Scouts or a 2-year mission trip to the Dominican Republic, I learned that you find yourself when you lose yourself in service to others.
When I first started my university studies at LSU I originally majored in Geography and Political Science as a Freshmen, but after my mission trip to the Dominican Republic I developed a passion for the Spanish Language and culture and changed my majors to Spanish and International Studies: Latin America. I also earned minors in Political Science, Business Administration and Geography. I made the most of my time at LSU, sometimes taking up to 21 credit hours in a semester so that I could get 2 bachelor’s degrees and 3 minors in just 4 years. During my final 2 and a half years at LSU I also served as a student leader helping lead the Global Studies Residential Community as an RA. Even with a very busy schedule, I found time as a poor, hard-working college student to serve and even help lead a congregation in Baton Rouge. When I graduated, I started working at Money Management International as a financial counselor. My role was to help those who were trying to get out of debt. Although it was a job, I also saw it as a way to give back: listening with empathy and giving tools to those overwhelmed with the stress of excessive debt so they could take control and get their finances back in order. It was with this job that I transferred to Sugar Land in 2010. Here I also gained valuable and practical experience in budgeting and finance.
In the Stafford area I have served as a Scoutmaster for Troops 1540 and Troops 1294. I have helped with community clean-up, food distribution, muck-out and other service after Hurricane Harvey. I am a member of the Stafford Run neighborhood organization and I am one of the inaugural members of the City of Stafford Juneteenth Committee. After 4 years as a financial counselor, I felt called to become an educator and I started right where I am in Stafford Middle School as a Spanish teacher. In addition to teaching and coaching tennis I also have been a co-sponsor of the Spanish Club and Chess Club, I have been the UIL Chess Puzzles coach and I have taught 5th grade summer school at the STEM Magnet Academy and tutored 6th grade science on Saturdays. I work hard and consistently get good appraisals on my instruction and classroom management and environment. Despite the many hours that I have dedicated to getting to know citizens of Stafford during this campaign I have continued to show up ready for my students each day. It is only thanks to my beautiful wife Brisa that I am able to manage such a full schedule of commitments. We are a team and any success I achieve in the classroom, on the court, and for our city is thanks to her love and support.
