Drew Hooker of Bell Buckle announced this week his decision to run for one of the District 1 County Commission seats.  

“I am a proud resident of Bedford County and have a small farm in Bell Buckle. I am married to Jessica, that is a registered nurse and owner of an organization small business. We have three children named Wyatt, Eli and Waverly. They all attend Cascade Elementary. I have been in public service most of my life as a critical care paramedic and firefighter.”  

Hooker started his career as a volunteer firefighter at Bell Buckle Fire Department and at Bedford County EMS. He’s spent the last 20 years as a paramedic and runs a small business, performing consulting services and training to public safety agencies and colleges.  

“I am active in the community and have attended First Baptist Church in Shelbyville for the past 22 years and volunteer by heading up the church security team, participating in the technical team and am an ordained Deacon. I volunteer as a coach with the Shelbyville Central High Football team and Cascade Youth Basketball League. I am a published author of several public safety related magazine articles and am a two-time recipient of the Tennessee EMS Star of Life award for life saves.”  

Hooker has a master’s degree in public administration with a focus on rural community management and public safety. He also has a bachelor’s degree in EMS management, two associate’s degrees and several certificates.  

“I have been a national, regional and local speaker on many topics in EMS including management, education, millennials and policies. I have a solid plan to assist preparing Bedford County for the future. I want to make sure we maintain our quality schools by retaining our teachers. I want to make sure we have quality roadways to make for a safe county and to continue to support our local public safety to ensure we maintain our quality staff, but to also provide them with the equipment needed to protect the citizens.”  

Hooker said he promises to focus on fiscal responsibility and ensure that there’s an internal audit before any “talk of increasing taxes for projects.” As well, he said there are three items which the county has to be the best at in order to recruit quality businesses and to protect it’s citizens.  

“We have to ensure that we share the load of the budget to every citizen of Bedford County, not just the home owner. I am asking for your vote. I am asking for your trust and I am asking for your support through this process. My focus is simple—schools, roads and public Safety. My plan is “Protect our Future” and that is what I promise to do.” 

Hooker may be contacted at drew4Bedford@ gmail.com or on Facebook at Drew for Bedford.