Successful businessman… community activist… devoted father and husband… just a few of the phrases that describe Jamie Kiel, Republican candidate for Alabama House District 18.

“Running for office is never something I thought I’d do,” Kiel said during an interview at the Piggly Wiggly grand opening in Cherokee this past week. “But I realized if I wanted to make a difference, I had to roll up my sleeves and really get involved.”

Kiel is the owner of Kiel Equipment, which he started while he was attending college at the University of North Alabama. What began as a small, local Russellville business 22 years ago now services customers across three states.

He first became active in regional issues as a founding member of the Franklin County Broadband Taskforce.

“As a business owner, I realized firsthand that we needed to do something about making high speed internet access more readily available in Franklin County if we were going to continue to grow our economy. But we also need it for our schools if we want our students to be able to compete in the 21st Century workforce, something I learned from my wife who is a teacher,” Kiel said.

He later became active on the Accreditation and Federal Monitoring committees for the Franklin County Schools. He also sponsors teams and events at area schools, and even does the PA announcements for high school sports.

So what lead him to jump into the political arena?

“I saw what is happening in Montgomery, the wasteful ways our tax dollars are being spent. And I knew as a businessman, I had something I could contribute,” Kiel said. “We should be running our government like we would run a business. That means cutting the size of government, cutting spending and reforming the tax code so businesses can grow, thrive, and create new jobs.”

Kiel has been taking his message around the district, trying to meet as many of the people he hopes to represent as possible at events like this grand opening.

“It’s been incredible. People have been so welcoming and supportive. And I want to hear their questions or concerns. That’s the only way we’re going to make this region… make this state… even better. And I am incredibly blessed to have my family 100% behind me on this journey. I couldn’t have made this run without their support,” he said.

Kiel and his wife Melissa have three daughters, and attend Thaprtown Baptist church, where he served as music director for 20 years.

In addition to Red Bay, Cherokee, Waterloo and Russellville, House District 18 includes portions of Florence, Tuscumbia and Muscle Shoals.

Originally published by Pen-N-Sword.