JIM
MARTIN'S
BIOGRAPHICAL BACKGROUND
Meet Jim
Martin: business owner, social worker, community organizer,
volunteer and now, candidate for the 18th House
District of the State of Maine. For the last 24 years, Jim
has been committed to social and economic justice for Maine
people. When he owned a small business, he worked to provide
good benefits and salaries for his employees. As a social worker,
he advocated in communities, schools, and the state capital
for the needs of those he served. As State Representative,
he will bring to the residents of Orono, Veazie, and the northeast
side of Bangor his long-standing commitment to social progress
and fiscal responsibility. He will focus on quality education
and access to health care, a state energy policy that emphasizes
clean, renewable energy, an economic policy that supports growth
of small businesses and jobs, and a clean environment in which
Maine families can live and work.
STUDENT
Jim was born 1965 in Des Moines, Iowa, and grew up in Missouri.
He spent his senior year in high school at a Department of
Defense school on the U.S. Air Force base in Adana, Turkey,
where his stepfather served. At a young age, Jim gained insight
into a country and culture very different from his own, and
an appreciation of the larger world. After high school, in
1984, Jim moved to Maine. His strong passion for equality fueled
an interest in social work, and in 1992, he received his Bachelor
of Arts degree in Social Work at the University of Maine in
Orono.
SOCIAL WORKER
Following
graduation, Jim worked with various Bangor area populations,
including
youth at risk of substance abuse and
adults with disabilities, and, for three years, was a child
protective case worker for Penobscot County. In the same way
that his year abroad increased his appreciation for people
from different backgrounds, Jim’s experience as a social
worker gave him new respect for those who dedicate their lives
to helping society’s most needy. He also saw, up close,
the economic and educational disparities that exist right here
in the local area.
BUSINESS OWNER
The emergence
of the Internet and World Wide Web led Jim Martin to a dramatic
career shift. In 1995, when a friend challenged
him to put his computer hobby to use, the two of them started
interactive marketing group, a web development and marketing
company in Bangor. This opportunity allowed Jim and his business
partner to help Maine companies take advantage of the new technology
to expand and compete in the developing global marketplace.
With nothing but an idea and an entrepreneurial spirit, they
co-founded their successful small venture that provided quality
jobs for local people. Over the next twelve years, interactive
marketing group grew from a desk in Jim’s living room
to a successful business that provided good jobs with benefits
and
economic
security for the employees and their families.
Jim never planned to become a small business owner, and he
had much to learn about developing budgets, meeting payroll,
and managing employees. He got a first-hand look at how skyrocketing
costs affected his commitment to providing quality health coverage
for employees. In some years, premiums increased by 30 to 40
percent, or more. And prices continued to rise, for both the
business and the employees, as the number of covered services
declined. Through this experience, Jim learned that Maine and
the nation must control health coverage costs in order to improve
the business climate and stimulate job growth.
Good salaries
and good benefits attract good employees. Like most business
owners, Jim wanted the best employees for his
business. Many times, when they could have outsourced work
to companies in Canada or India, Jim and interactive marketing
group chose to keep their good jobs here at home, for the people
of Maine. Keeping jobs in Maine is smart business and is the
right thing to do to strengthen communities. That’s why
Jim calls his politics socially progressive and fiscally moderate:
good business decisions, fairness for all people.
VOLUNTEER
Along with social work and owning a business, Jim has volunteered
for organizations and causes that advance his commitment to
social and economic justice for Maine people. He has tutored
literacy students, college freshmen, and high school students.
He worked on the School Supply Drive for Hurricane Katrina
Victims, and with Outright Bangor in program development and
as a mentor to GLBT youth.
For 20
years, Jim has been a grass-roots organizer and volunteer
for political
and issue-oriented campaigns, and has worked
as a Voter Protection Volunteer at the polls. In 2004, he was
elected a national delegate to the Democratic National Convention,
an honor that fulfilled a personal dream: to be part of the
presidential nominating process. That experience strengthened
Jim’s belief in every citizen’s obligation to become
involved in their government. He believes that ordinary people
must commit themselves to understanding the workings of government,
or special interests will – someone with money but not
necessarily the people’s best interests at heart.
CANDIDATE
Jim Martin has the experience, the ideas, and the proven commitment
to issues that matter most to Maine: education, health care,
clean energy, economic growth, and a healthy environment. He
will bring to the State House his passion for social justice,
his commitment to fiscal responsibility, and his advocacy for
all Maine citizens to become involved in the workings of government.
For the past 12 years, Jim has lived Orono with his partner,
Scott. They enjoy Maine’s natural environment whenever
possible, and love to hike, bike, kayak and camp throughout
the state.
Jim is
also a long-time Maine Hockey fan and attends as many home
games as possible. He hopes one day to be able to be in attendance
for Maine's next NCAA Championship title.
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