About Tamara

The best days are ahead of us, not behind us

My name is Tamara Hoke. I have served for the last 18 years as Library Director at the Jay-Niles Memorial Library in Jay, Maine. It is the same library where I held my first job at 14! I was raised in Jay by my mother and grandmother and my fondest memories from childhood were lessons passed down to me from my mother. We didn’t have a lot of money but my mother instilled a love of nature, learning, and reading from a very early age.

In summer, we would swim in the Seven Miles Stream or play in the fields, down over the bank, behind the trailer where we lived. In autumn, we didn’t have to go far to enjoy walks and picnics. In winter, we would bundle up and go sledding behind where we lived or ice skating. My relationship to this area runs deep and I know my neighbors feel the same way. I’ve always wanted to do whatever I can to be a steward of this special corner of Maine that we all love.

A love of reading and being read to, started me on a journey that would lead me to work in libraries and eventually get a Master’s Degree in Library Science and become a Library Director. I was educated in the Jay school system where I attended K-12, graduating from Jay High School in 1994. I believe in giving schools the funding they need to support students and teachers. Strong public schools are the backbone of any community. They prepare young people to become active citizens, taxpayers, and workers. The children of today are the adults of tomorrow. They are the future and we must invest in them.

Growing up in Jay, living in the community, and working here has allowed me to establish deep roots, and in many cases, lifelong relationships with people in this area. I am running for office to give back to the community that nurtured me and gave me the head start I needed. We need to diversify our economy and bring jobs of the future to the area. We can no longer expect the local paper mill to provide large numbers of good paying jobs. Those jobs have been in a steady decline for a long time. I want to work to bring good paying jobs with benefits to the local area. The best way to move forward is to bring opportunities to this area. I want to go to Augusta to get things done. I will work for the people of this area. I will always make decisions based on conviction, common-sense, and compassion.

I have always tried to give back to my community. When I was fresh out of college, I worked as a Family Support Worker with Community Concepts, connecting families to needed social services. Through my work at the library, I have also striven to connect community members to resources. I may not always know the answers, but I know how to research and find them. I have also served on the RSU 73 school board, the Literacy Volunteers Board, Maine State Library-Youth Services Committee, and the University of Maine at Farmington/ National Science Foundation Inclusive Makerspace Summit Consortium.

Our community needs to tackle issues of mental health and addiction. We can start by removing the stigma surrounding these issues so individuals do not suffer in isolation. These issues don’t always co-occur, but they often do. Occasionally, mental health issues can lead to drug and alcohol use as individuals seek to self-medicate in an attempt to ameliorate feelings of hopelessness, anxiety, etc. We need strong community support systems. Too many people with mental illness (and family members) don’t know where to turn for help. We must make sure that people have the therapy and medication they need, and have rehabilitation services and resources.

I believe that everyone should have the tools they need to succeed. As your representative, I would seek ways to stop the out-migration of our young people. We need to create opportunities to keep our bright, creative, and innovative young people in our state and in our communities. That means, embracing new technologies that will move us forward. The best way to get young people excited about and feel ownership in their community is to ask them to take part in visioning. While I believe that it’s important to look at our history of place and celebrate our accomplishments, I choose to believe the best days are ahead of us, not behind us. We are still writing the story of what our communities can be.

Support for Tamara

If you want to know how thorough Tammy's work is, read the book she wrote on the history of Jay (and the one on Wilton!). If you want to know how much she cares, just talk to her for a few minutes. Tammy puts her whole heart into her work and that will serve us well in Augusta.

Hon. Tina Riley

So many of our younger people leave our communities for greener pastures elsewhere. But from an early age Tammy committed herself to using her skills to make our community a better place. With her background and heart she will make a terrific legislator.

Steve Bien

Tamara is a caring person with deep roots in her community. She has a passion to serve and listens closely to people’s perspectives before making thoughtful decisions. We would be very lucky to have her representing us in Augusta. That’s why our family supports her!

Jeff Bailey

I’ve known Tamara since she was in a Girl Scout troop with my daughter decades ago. I marveled then at her maturity and kindness.

These traits have not changed and I now marvel at her work ethic and determination. She is a strong candidate for our district.

Terri Letourneau

Tamara's commitment shows in the way she listens - intent, interested, committed.

Lynn Ouellette

Tamara possesses the qualities of integrity, determination and empathy that the people of our district deserve. She will serve the needs of our district without bias. I enthusiastically endorse Tamara Hoke

Elaine Fitzgerald

I support Tamara Hoke for Representative because she is an independent thinker and will bring a new perspective to the Legislature. She will work hard to represent the town she knows so well. She will do us proud!

Ellen Grunblatt

Tamara shares my priorities which benefit all: strong public education, affordable healthcare, and addressing the climate crisis.

Lindsey Hopkins

On the Issues

Economy/Jobs

We need to diversify the economy. Currently, the jobs in my district rely heavily on an industry where jobs are hanging on by a thin thread. We can’t continue to put all of our eggs in that proverbial one basket. We need to bring more well-paying jobs with benefits to the area. People cannot live well on jobs that barely pay minimum wage, are less than full-time, and have no benefits such as health insurance. Add to that, the cost of daycare, high energy costs, and high grocery bills and what you get is a money stretched too thin and families that are overwhelmed, living paycheck to paycheck. I believe in building an economy where people can thrive.

Education

I believe in strengthening public education by making sure they have adequate funding (to at least 55% as mandated by the citizens of Maine) and resources. This should be done by broadening the revenue base used to support public education, therefore, reducing the reliance on property taxes for each individual municipality. We need to attract well-qualified teachers to the profession. Fewer and fewer young people are going into education. We need to recruit creative and intelligent young people to the profession by supporting teachers. By supporting teachers, we are supporting students. We must create the best possible atmosphere for learning. The best schools have community and parental support and involvement and well-qualified teachers and administrators. They provide equitable opportunities for all students to thrive.

Literacy and Libraries

I fully support literacy initiatives and libraries. I am interested in strengthening literacy at every level. This includes strong support for early childhood education and literacy programs as well as programs for new adult readers. I am the library director at Jay-Niles Memorial Library and have been for the last 16 years. Libraries are truly Democratic institutions availing free access to information and it’s resources to ALL local citizens.

Environment

I support renewable energy initiatives and believe in being a steward of our beautiful state and its environment. Clean air and water are top priorities for me. They are necessary not only to keep the environment in Maine healthy but also essential for the health of all people living here.

Caring for Older Mainers

We are the oldest state in the nation and yet we don’t fully support our oldest citizens. We must do better. So many older people get warehoused in nursing homes. We must make every effort to help people to stay in their own homes independently as long as possible and to live the best life possible. We need to do a better job preparing people for retirement. Too often they are not given adequate resources and education on money matters and medicare enrollment. Maine has extremely high energy costs and with increased inflation, older people are faced with the difficult decision of heating their homes or buying healthy meals. People with disabilities also have a myriad of needs that could be better met. Issues of transportation, housing, home care, and assistive technology are issues impacting both the elderly and those with disabilities. Other issues that are important for both populations include: maintaining independence, access to healthy meals, support in managing chronic illnesses and diseases, and caretaker services. Additionally, we must improve accessibility to people with mobility issues, and those who have visual and hearing impairments.