Democrat Reggi Wants To Help The ‘Average Person’ As District 7 House Member
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MOUNDSVILLE - Speech pathologist Sarah Reggi wants to be the voice for West Virginians as the state addresses such issues as education funding, childcare, water problems and controversies surrounding the development of data centers.
She is the Democratic nominee for the District 7 seat in the Nov. 3 general election, and will face incumbent Charles Sheedy, R-Marshall.
"I am running because not enough regular people are running for office," Reggi said. "The people who are down there have been down there, and they are not doing things for the average person.
"We're basically just seeing things they want getting done - things like data centers, and people not having a say about them in their local communities. Things like water projects, fixing roads, and working on our childcare and our health care are not getting done."
She also doesn't think state lawmakers are "taking their job seriously" when they consider bills such as the one from last session prohibiting a person from standing up on their motorcycle while riding.
"The things they are discussing are wasting time," Reggi continued. "They have 60 days to get something accomplished for West Virginians, and they are not taking that time seriously, in my opinion. I would take it seriously."
Reggi works as a speech therapist at schools - both public and private - in Ohio County, and it is a job she has done for 23 years. She works with students at Middle Creek Elementary School, North Park Head Start, Wheeling Country Day School and St. Michael Parish School.
Reggi, of Moundsville, grew up in Marshall County in a log cabin built by her family and was active in church and community service projects. She would go on to graduate from John Marshall High School then receive her undergraduate degree from West Liberty University in speech-language pathology and audiology with a minor in education.
Reggi would next go on to attend Howard University for a year before obtaining her masters in speech-language pathology from West Virginia University.
"I was never really interested in politics," she said.
Then the strike by West Virginia teachers took place in 2018.
"Just before our first strike, I started paying attention," she said. "I started by looking at just education bills, then I started looking at all bills.... Later I became a (union) building rep for my building at Middle Creek.
"I started at that point looking at the education bills, and what bills were introduced and never sent to a committee."
Over time she became more aware of water issues in the state and found them "very disturbing."
"Everybody heard about the water issues in Michigan, and then I came to find out we had worse water issues in West Virginia," Reggi said. "Living in Ohio County or Marshall County, we don't have to deal with that. But there are other parts of the state where it isn't so great
"Wetzel County has issues. Cameron has issues in Marshall County. The southern coal fields have tons of issues with their water. For me, it was a big eye opener that government isn't working the way it is supposed to."
She believes there are many issues affecting the state, but she has narrowed her focus to these- water, childcare, education, jobs and concerns about data centers.
"Democrat or Republican, pretty much everyone is opposed to data centers," Reggi said. "While I recognize we need revenue, I don't think data centers are the way to go.
"One of the things I want to do is be a voice for the community. If this is something they want, then I would be a voice for that. If it is something they don't want, I would be a voice in that direction," she explained.