NASHVILLE - On Saturday, September 4th, as ashville celebrates Labor Day, SEIU Local 205 will endorse Odessa Kelly for Congress. Odessa was a rank and file member of Local 205 for years as a Metro Parks employee and continues to be an associate member in good standing.

Honey Hereth, a paraprofessional and SEIU member from Metro Nashville Public Schools said,“Our union is a family and it’s not every day you have a chance to elect someone from your family to Congress. Odessa is Nashville. She was born here, she grew up here, and she raised kids here. There is nobody I trust more to represent us in Congress.”

Alisa Utley, a 911 dispatcher and SEIU member from Nashville’s Department of Emergency Communications added, “Odessa is a person who truly understands what it means to serve the public, as she did at Metro Parks running Summer camps and after school programs for kids. Odessa understands what working families are up against and she will bring that knowledge and experience to Washington DC where it is desperately needed.”

“Odessa has been a force for change in our community for years. Whether it was running the Napier Community Center, organizing with NOAH, or negotiating the Community Benefits Agreement on the Soccer Stadium, she has always been a leader. We’re so proud to support her in this campaign,” said Russ Anthony, an SEIU member from Metro Social Services.

President Brad Rayson said, “we are extremely excited that Odessa is running for Congress. She is so well-grounded and prepared to be our next Representative. Most politicians have to learn about the issues working people face every day, but Odessa knows them already. She’s witnessed them in her neighborhood; she’s listened to her neighbors and the people in the community where she’s worked, and she’s experienced those issues herself. When most politicians say ‘I know what you mean,’  I take it with a grain of salt, but when Odessa says it, it’s the truth.

The Service Employees International Union (“SEIU”) has a membership of over 2 million members in the public and private sector. In Tennessee, SEIU Local 205 represents thousands of public service and healthcare workers across the state, including employees of Metro-Nashville Davidson County.