The following is a letter written by the family of the late Senator Donnelly to voters in the 4th Middlesex district:
We are reaching out to you today to ask you to join our family, as well as thousands of your friends and neighbors, in casting your vote on Tuesday, June 27 for Cindy Friedman as our next State Senator in the special primary election to succeed our husband and father — the late Senator Ken Donnelly.
Ken loved serving the people of the 4th Middlesex district with all of his heart and soul, and nobody did more for the past decade to help him do his job than Cindy.
Working as his Chief of Staff, Cindy partnered with Ken to tackle the issues that face our district and our state. The thousands of hours Ken and Cindy spent together working on behalf of the people of the 4th Middlesex district, the thousands of hours they invested to move Ken’s agenda forward, and the thousands of hours they dedicated to helping individuals navigate the often overwhelming state bureaucracy are just three of the many reasons we as a family are voting for Cindy and are urging you to do the same.
Like Ken, Cindy is not a career politician.
Like Ken, Cindy is a thoughtful problem-solver and a fighter with rich life experiences.
And like Ken, who dedicated himself to public service in his earlier career as a firefighter, Cindy worked as a public school teacher, in the private sector as a project manager in the high-tech industry, as a community activist, and, of course, as Ken’s Chief of Staff for nine years in the Massachusetts State House.
Our entire family believes that Cindy is uniquely prepared to hit the ground running on Day One to represent you and fight for all our interests on Beacon Hill. We have full confidence in Cindy and know that she will continue and expand upon Ken’s legacy and initiatives, especially in the areas of worker rights, wage inequality, support for unions, mental health care, and educational opportunity.
Ken deeply valued his relationship with Cindy and the work they did together. His wish and ours is to see her use her passion, experience and drive as the next state senator and carry forward the agenda they worked so hard on together. That’s why we are voting for our friend Cindy Friedman on Tuesday, June 27th and are urging you to do the same.
The Donnelly Family — Judy, Ryan, Keith and Brenna Donnelly