This week, Jane Clementi endorsed my campaign. Her statement is below. This particular endorsement means the world to me. As many of you know, in 2010 Jane’s son Tyler tragically committed suicide. It was a wake up call for the world. I remember feeling like national consciousness had shifted on it and all of a sudden people cared far more about preventing LGBTQ youth suicide than ever before. Earlier that year, I helped start The Trevor Project NextGen, New York which became a pipeline for volunteers to that group. A year later, I supported the launch of the Tyler Clementi Foundation which is focused on ending bullying. Now, I’m running to be the first openly LGBTQ person elected to Montclair, New Jersey‘s government. I’m running with the most diverse and inclusive slate of of candidates imaginable, led by Dr. Renee Baskerville, our mayoral candidate and champion of diversity and inclusion herself.

Pictured here as well is the late Babs Siperstein, one of America’s foremost transgender rights advocates. We miss you, Babs!

“I wanted to take a minute to highlight my friend Peter Yacobellis. Peter is running to be the first openly LGBTQ elected official in Montclair, NJ. Peter has led a life of service to the broader LGBTQ community. In 2010, after the tragic loss of my son Tyler, Peter worked with a group of friends to form Trevor NextGen, which was the largest volunteer group in the NYC metro area at that time, and directly supported the Trevor Project’s crisis and suicide prevention services. Then in 2011, as a leader within the Cuomo administration and community, Peter was a key supporter of the launch of our foundation — the Tyler Clementi Foundation.”

“Peter would make a terrific councilman in Montclair and I urge anyone looking to support getting LGBTQ people elected to office, to contribute to and sign up with his campaign, which you can do above.”

-Jane