Lewisburg councilman seeks Senate seat

January 17, 2008 06:27 am

— LEWISBURG -- Borough Council member Louis "Trey" Casimir announced Wednesday he is seeking the Democratic nomination for the state Senate from the 23rd District.
Mr. Casimir is a licensed acupuncturist with a private practice on Market Street. He is running on a theme of "A New Prescription for Pennsylvania."
His campaign theme is based off the principles of his occupation. "My training in Chinese medicine has given me a different way of looking at things in a standard, Western approach, so there's much more emphasis on cooperating with nature, understanding natural laws, natural flows of seasons and that sort of thing and exploiting these things and not fighting against it too much," he said.
He plans to travel extensively throughout the district, beginning with a series of petition-signing parties on Jan. 26. His scheduled appearances include a stop from 12:15 to 1 p.m. in the Brookpark Station Cafe near Lewisburg.
In the spring and summer, Mr. Casimir intends to tour the watersheds of the district by canoe with his wife and three children to emphasize the natural connections that bind people together.
In addition to serving on the council, Mr. Casimir is secretary of the Lewisburg Area Recreation Authority board and is past secretary of the Lewisburg Business and Professional Association. He helped found the Central Susquehanna Citizens Coalition in 2005 and was chosen by the Center for Progressive Leadership in 2007 to participate in its emerging political leaders program.
Sen. Roger Madigan, a Towanda Republican, is retiring at the end of his current term. The district includes Lycoming, Bradford and Sullivan counties as well as portions of Union and Susquehanna counties.
In Union County, the region includes Lewisburg and Mifflinburg boroughs and Buffalo, East Buffalo, Gregg, Kelly, Union, West Buffalo and White Deer townships.
Mr. Casimir grew up in Lewisburg and graduated from Lewisburg Area High School in 1978. He is married to Amy Janel Casimir.
Restoring local waterways is an issue he said he's passionate about.
"From coal mine pollution, to out-of-date dams, there are all kinds of past damages that have been done to our waterways that we have the means to correct now," Mr. Casimir said. "Anything I can do toward building fish ladders, toward cleaning up waterways, (and) just to making people aware of their connections via our waterways."
On other issues, Mr. Casimir said he would work to expand job opportunities, improve affordability and access to health care and preserve the environment.
He said state government is too expensive, frequently ineffective and sometimes dangerous. He hopes his perspective can help preserve the health of the environment, prevent the disintegration of traditional communities, protect against over-dependence on foreign oil and return the economy to robust health.
For information, contact Trey@Trey4PA.com or Jim@Trey4PA.com.

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