Stephanie grew up in Mulberry, FL. Upon graduating high school, Stephanie attended the University of South Florida (USF) in Tampa, Florida, where she received her Associate of Arts Degree.
Stephanie worked at Tal-Tran, the transportation system for the city of Tallahassee, Florida, before her volunteer work with the Education Committee of the Jr. Women’s Club of Tallahassee led to her being recruited as an Occupational Specialist by Mr. Murphy at Griffin Middle School of Leon County. Her dedication to children inspired the receiving of a mini-grant for career exploration.
Lake County became her family’s retirement home because of its rolling hills, beautiful lakes, and proximity to all of Central Florida’s attractions, arts, and culture centers. Here is the best quality of life for active retirees. The partnership of Lake-Sumter State College and the Small Business Administration (SBA) was ideally to support economic development for those retirees seeking a second venture in the business world and the young generations to achieve their dreams of entrepreneurship. The growing cultural diversification invited numerous opportunities to share dignified and priceless worldly experiences. It was natural for her campaign to focus on education, quality living, economic and civic empowerment, immigration and environmental issues.
Stephanie’s forty years and over 50,000 hours of community services and philanthropy have led to her interest in Non-Profit Management. She currently is a member of Hope International Church of Groveland, FL, under the tutelage of Pastors Tony and Jodie McCoy.
I have been fortunate to live the American Dream. I started with nothing and worked hard to achieve my personal pursuit of happiness. I have been “there.” I have been a high school dropout, a returning adult student, and middle-aged college graduate. I have worked as a blue-collar, unskilled, union employee, and I have experienced being a salaried supervisor. I have been a single working Mom without health insurance, and I have been the parental caregiver. I have sold Real Estate and managed renovation projects as General Contractor. I know what it feels like to live paycheck to paycheck. My values have been instilled by my life experience.
I have been a Leesburg resident since January 2017. My husband and I were frequent visitors during the past twenty years. Central Florida was the happiest place on earth for us. During our visits, we would dream and make plans for retiring in central Florida. We would discuss how wonderful it would be to retire and work part-time at WDW, to be on vacation every day! It was a lovely dream. Sadly, my husband was diagnosed with stage 4 Glioblastoma (brain cancer) in Feb 2015. We decided to enjoy the last six months of his life here in Florida as we had planned to, in retirement. Our life together was an amazing love story. We loved, we laughed, we cared for our family, we struggled through the hard times together, and most importantly we inspired each other to be the best we could be at whatever the venture. We were blessed to have each other for thirty years. I made him a promise that I would go on and that I will do my best in all I choose to accomplish.
Ryan Morales is a local business owner who has been helping other small business owners with their marketing for well over a decade. He is also a local Pop Warner football coach who dedicates hours to helping local children. Ryan is a man of science and looks forward to helping mold the future of our country into one of inclusion, equality, and peace.
For too long, our state has been taken by politicians who value party loyalty over their own people. My decision to run is not about the left or the right, because it’s about doing the right thing. I will reach across the aisle to work on common-sense and fact-based compromises for all issues that help strengthen our community and save taxpayer money.
Today Ryan’s first and most important job is being a father to 2 beautiful little girls. Ryan comes from a Hospitality, Marketing and Entertainment background. He is currently a small business owner of a consulting firm called DelPuma, located in Clermont. Ryan is considered a marketing guru by his peers for his high energy, upbeat ideas as he helps to create smart branding and imaging strategies for local businesses. As a business consultant Ryan is able to pinpoint his client’s problems and offers them solutions that work. Ryan wants to bring his skills and knowledge to Tallahassee so he can help the many who feel they are not being represented properly in our capitol.
As Ryan says “I am a concerned son, brother, husband, and father, I want to protect our state in order to create a brighter future for all Floridians. I’m just a normal guy looking to clean up the mess and corruption in Tallahassee.”
