About Daisy Montgomery, MBA, PMP

“Daisy, we had to give Snowy away.”

My family had been selling everything we had over the course of several months because my father, an Air Force veteran, had his first “big time” job, and the company he worked for completely liquidated during the Dot Com Crash with no warning.

A job he worked so hard for that took us from scrimping, and barely getting by, to solidly middle-class?
Stock options?
Retirement?

All were gone overnight like a fever dream – as if they never existed at all.

We had no furniture, I had sold my toys to a man who ran a church-based charity for $20, and I slept on the floor. All of my belongings were in a small maroon suitcase that my mother, a Navy veteran, had taken with her to basic training. We ate cube steak almost every night because it was extremely cheap.

Although I struggled with the way things were, I could endure – until Snowy, my childhood dog of 10 years – was given away because we couldn’t care for her anymore. I could not describe it in words as a 12-year-old kid, but I knew I lost something incredibly important that day.

Dignity.

Dignity is the right of a person to be valued and respected for their own sake, and to be treated ethically. A sense of pride in oneself, that one can live in their own way that feels nourishing and meaningful.

 

Although now I am the successful small business owner of Autistics Anonymous, a mother, a wife, and Vice Chair for the Fort Collins Disability Advisory Board - that experience has stuck with me and has informed my advocacy even today. I know what it's like to have had nothing and to work for everything you have.

 

In Fort Collins today, with all of our beautiful trees, recreation programs, and amazing institutions, many people are struggling to make ends meet. Rising taxes, cost of living, stagnating wages, lack of housing options, and unnecessary fights against growth are leaving people feeling trapped and worn down. It's driving people out of Fort Collins to surrounding bedroom communities to find relief.

 

Whether they are seniors on a fixed income who are not able to age in place, or teachers who are paying for all of their supplies out of their own pockets to the detriment of their own livelihoods, small business owners who are trying to put food on the table for their kids, young people working three jobs to scrape by, or even veterans who are struggling to find support post-service -- they all share something in common: they are deserving of dignity.

 

District 1 is a unique district that blends the Old Town and the new; from shaded Highlander Heights to up-and-coming neighborhoods with young families like Mosaic, rich culture within our Latino and Spanish-speaking communities to our French roots, legacy small businesses and new ventures, artists and musicians from all walks of life, and a foodie scene that is growing in notoriety. 

 

But what matters most is the people. 

Community.
 

How can we have claim to have community if we push the very people who contribute to the value of our city out of it?

Or not pay them enough for them to live here when our largest employers have benefitted from the biggest tax breaks?

 

It's time for District 1 to be represented by someone who wants us to move forward in a way we all can thrive, not just survive.
With a Purpose.
For the People.

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Daisy feels strongly about advocacy that directly helps the people when and how they need it most - not through organizations that give less than 1% to the people they claim to serve. She strongly supports our veterans, teachers, women's rights, the BIPOC communities, the queer communities, disability rights, and believes that we should be students of history.

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She currently sits on the Board of Directors for The Autism Society Colorado and was recently appointed to serve on the Fort Collins Disability Advisory Board as its Vice Chair. She holds a BSc in Management of Information Systems, a MBA in Project Management, and a Project Management (PMP) global certifcation.

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When Daisy isn't campaigning, advocating, or working on her business, she is spending time with her husband, who is an Army disabled combat veteran, her son, their 3 cats, and their 1 dog, Chomper Chumley. She loves Pokémon, video games, bird watching, grilling outside in the sunshine while enjoying a Sippin' Pretty, and a good cheesecake!