Mayoral Candidate Profile: Wayne Taylor

By Zaina Adamu Former Alderman Wayne Taylor has noticed a change in Annapolis since he moved from Prince Georges County 16 years ago. He says the unity among the people dissolved and led to a disconnect between the city and its residents. I want to bring Annapolis together to make it the capital city it should be, he says. Taylor came to Annapolis by way of a job offer as manager at Value City. He eventually met his wife while working and decided to call it home. He later became a troubleshooter for Toys R Us where he says he gained his skills in money management. He has also served as Alderman for Ward Four and was the director of the Department of Aging and Disabilities. He most recent position was as a community engagement coordinator for the Anne Arundel Community Action Agency Partnership. Taylor wants to restructure Annapolis with a five-pronged method he calls the points of life. On top of his list is education. If elected, he wants to maintain a relationship with the Mayors Commission on Education a commission he helped to establish as Alderman. He says by working with the organization, as well as the Anne Arundel County Public Schools Office of Equity, grants will be allotted to fund Annapolis public schools. To fight crime, Taylor plans to create innovative civic and education processes to increase public awareness. He says in order to handle crime effectively he and his team will get to the root of the problem by discovering why some citizens partake in illegal activities. We will explore increasing police presence in the neighborhoods, install surveillance cameras and establish good relationships between the police and the citizens in these hard hit economic neighborhoods, he says. Taylor recognizes that transportation is becoming more problematic in Annapolis. He says building relationships with state and federal officials will help improve transit and says the ideas city government proposes in regards to transportation must go from paper to reality.
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Volunteer honored at National Senior Medicare Patrol Conference

Annapolis, Md. Dottie Beauregard of Davidsonville, 74, is a volunteer with the Anne Arundel County Department of Aging and Disabilities. She was one of 10 volunteers in the country and its territories to be recognized August 19, 2009 at the Senior Medical Patrol (SMP) National Conference in Washington, D.C. Beauregard received her SMP Volunteer Excellence Award from Kathy Greenlee, assistant secretary for Aging in the U.S. Administration on Aging/U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The SMP volunteers we are honoring come from a variety of locales and backgrounds, but they all possess the same exceptional traits, Greenlee says. They are extraordinarily caring, tireless, dedicated, tenacious, and enthusiastic. They embrace excellence in their remarkable commitment and willingness to traverse every corner of their communities to donate their time and share their knowledge with older Americans and their families. Beauregard began volunteering in 1993 for the Senior Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) and expanded her volunteer service in 1998 for the Senior Medicare Patrol program, which combats fraud and abuse in Medicare and Medicaid. The program provides public education to increase senior awareness of health care fraud issues. We are so proud of Dottie, who goes above and beyond her working hours and has been known to call clients once she has left the office to resolve an issue, says Amy Rubino, SHIP program director. In one case, a client was inappropriately enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan. Dottie worked with the clients Federal Employee Health Benefits Plan, the Office of Personnel Management, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to resolve the issue. Dottie did all this while en route to her vacation.

Mayoral Candidate Wayne Taylor Courtesy Photo Transportation and energy policies go hand-in-hand for Taylor. He calls it the environment on his fourth platform of issues. He says Annapolis residents will have to become more conscious of alternative uses of energy. More importantly, he says if government buildings begin to use energy-efficient tools, private sectors will follow. Taylor wants to cut unnecessary spending, which he calls the pork and fat of the budget. He says he will call on the Office of Economic Development to push forth fiscal growth in downtown businesses. Im a hands-on individual. Im out [downtown] in faith of the individuals I represent, he says. People who work with me are going to do the same thing. They are not going to be waiting for people to come to them theyre going to be out there. Unlike most candidates, Taylor says the Market House is not as relevant as other issues on his agenda. The Market House is not a primary concern. The Market House and other issues are effects of poor judgments in government, he says. It is the existing city government he wants to change and says the people of Annapolis can help to make that happen. This concludes the Annapolis Times mayoral profiles. The mayoral primary election will take place September 15, 2009.

Dottie Beauregard Courtesy Photo Beauregard has donated more than 1,700 hours of service to the Senior Medicare Patrol program. She has participated in more than 200 hours of inservice training, remaining current on the complexities of Medicare. At the Department of Aging and Disabilities for the past 12 years, SMP has maintained a corps of 10 volunteers. The program has reached more than 12,000 people in Anne Arundel County through hundreds of public presentations. The SMP message has reached tens of thousands of people through updates on local cable TV channels, radio broadcasts, and newspapers. SMP volunteers provide one-on-one counseling through the county to keep the public informed about Medicare, Medicaid and fraud and abuse of these services. Working in partnership with the U.S. DHHS Office of Inspector General, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Department of Justice and millions of committed health care providers, these efforts are paying substantial dividends, Greenlee says. The recognition ceremony underscores the substantial contributions older Americans continue to make to their communities and the nation, Greenlee says. The other nine honorees were from California, Delaware, Guam, Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas and Vermont.
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The Annapolis Times, August 28 - September 3, 2009 (www.baltimoretimesonline.com)