House Candidate Halts Campaign Citing Daughter’s Cancer
BY BUDDY NEVINS
Florida House candidate Elaine Geller has put her campaign on hold, saying she needed to take time to help her daughter, who was diagnosed with cancer.
She made her announcement in an e-mail to supporters distributed to today.
Geller, D-Hollywood, did not say when she would resume her campaign for House District 99, a heavily-Democratic district based in Hollywood which becomes open next year.
Former state Rep. Evan Jenne, D-Dania Beach, is also running for the seat.
Browardbeat.com reported in September that Geller had lost her license to sell commodities after admitting to shady sales practices. Sources say that her campaign started to collapse after that exclusive post linked here.
Here is Geller’s e-mail to supporters today:
—–Original Message—–
From: Elaine Geller [mailto:elaine@elainegeller.com]
Sent: Monday, November 04, 2013 10:36 PM
To: elaine@elainegeller.com
Subject: Friends and Supporters
Dear Friends and Supporters,
It is with a heavy heart that I write this letter to all of my wonderful
friends and supporters who have been working so hard to support my
candidacy, so that we can bring positive change to Tallahassee. Many of you
may have heard or read posts online or on Facebook about the challenge our
family is currently facing. But I want you to hear about it from me
directly, and to understand why I am putting my campaign on hold.
Last Monday evening I received the call that all parents dread. My
beautiful, wonderful daughter Megan was rushed by ambulance to the hospital
and has been diagnosed with AML Leukemia. Megan, as many of you know, is a
teacher and is working on her Master’s Degree in Special Education at Hunter
College in New York City.
Of course, I rushed to NYC to be with her, and we are hoping and praying for
a good outcome. She is in New York Presbyterian Hospital, which is a great
hospital with a wonderful team of Doctors and care-givers. We are hoping
this round of 24/7 chemotherapy, which she
has just undergone, will knock out the leukemia cells and push her
into remission. She will remain in the hospital until the end of the month,
after which we are hoping we can bring her home to Florida.
We will work to get her strength back and protect her immune system; and
then she will undergo the chemotherapy again — to kill all of the remaining
Leukemia cells. The good news is she is young and is an excellent candidate
for stem cell blood marrow transplant, which would be a cure. Megan will be
celebrating her 27th birthday in the hospital, and the cure is the perfect
birthday present!
The Doctors are confident we should beat this dreaded disease, but it will
take complete dedication, hard work, and lots of love from loved ones and
friends, alike, for the next 6 months to a year.
So, I am putting my campaign on hold for now. Those of you, who know me,
know I am capable of balancing many things at a time and getting them done,
just as many of you have had to do in your own lives. In fact, the reason I
decided to run in the first place is to make sure that one of us who
understands the challenges we face, could go to Tallahassee to fight for the
middle class.
At this time I must step back from the grueling demands of campaigning
to be the parent and caretaker my daughter needs and put my
campaigning on hold. I hope to get back to you with updates in the
future.
Please keep us in your hearts and prayers. Your love, friendship and
support are important to us. Thank you for all the well-wishes, calls,
emails and texts. Keep them coming. We will beat this! As I always say,
let’s get it done!
Fondly,
Elaine Geller
—
Elaine
Political advertisement paid for and approved by Elaine Geller, Democrat,
for State Representative, District 99
November 5th, 2013 at 1:00 pm
Our prayers are with her
November 5th, 2013 at 3:01 pm
It is clear that Elaine Geller does not have the experience or honesty to be a representative. She should admit defeat and forget about putting her campaign on hold, drop out immediately and attend to her family.
November 5th, 2013 at 5:45 pm
Oh… so “sources say” that Elaine Geller’s campaign “started to collapse after that exclusive post,” which was your own post? Your post clearly stated that Geller had “agreed to a six-month suspension of her commodities sales license.” But that wasn’t the state, the feds or the Commodities Futures Trading Commission coming down on anybody. That was action taken by a trade association in regards to their own rules. That’s what you wrote, Buddy.
It’s tough making a living, especially in sales, and especially in selling commodities. We’ve seen so many individuals and companies either pleading guilty or reaching huge settlements in regards to finance and investments, including our current Governor, whose company paid the largest fine in U.S. history. He thus avoided further prosecution and made it into the Governor’s seat.
For all I know, Ms. Geller may have faced a choice between a more gentle approach to commodities sales or being out of a job, and that’s for all you know, too. Commodities sales are not the makeup counter and Macy’s. I’m pretty sure that the sales job was stressful, and agreeing to an association’s sanction was likely what several others in that office were doing as well because the trading environment was probably rough. I have to view the circumstances that you yourself had described, Buddy, with a degree of sympathy.
Economic times have been very tough for tens of millions of regular folk, including Elaine Geller, but it too often seems that it’s only been the regular folk who have suffered any real consequences in America. J.P. Morgan has just been issued a tremendous fine, and other gargantuan settlements that barely dent the income and worth of corporate players has been the game for a while now. Personal sanctions by an association, let alone the government, haven’t been a fate frequent to the big-time players in the trading markets.
Elaine Geller has come through her financial and employment difficulties in a manner that is representative of so many working mothers, setting aside those who get involved in trading commodities and other investments. She has also, however, demonstrated a perspective and a determination that may actually be perceived as quite appropriate for a candidate for the state House of Representatives.
You, Buddy Nevins, so aggressively support the man in the race for that seat that you posted an actual invitation to a campaign fundraiser- not to report on who’s listed on the invite or on any other news matter but simply to INVITE PEOPLE to attend and to DONATE!! That does not simply indicate support for one candidate over the other. That indicates a deeper involvement in that campaign to my eyes, and I’d like to know what the hell happened to a “paid political advertisement” disclosure here on BrowardBeat.
Ms. Geller has attended to cancer in the family a lot more than once, and learning of a sudden diagnosis of AML Leukemia after her daughter had sought help at an “urgent care” facility and had been told that she probably had a virus or strep throat and should just go home was understandably devastating. Ms. Geller had immediately flown to New York to be in the hospital with her daughter every day after an actual hospital provided an actual diagnosis, and this has only been over the last couple of weeks. But that’s understandable to likely everyone with the exception of Buddy Nevins.
But whatever Geller’s history and family problems, the history of crimes, misdemeanors, malfeasance, fines and imprisonment in the Jenne family is notorious- notorious and apparently not over, folks. Just today I heard Dan Christensen talking on WLRN radio about new revelations coming out about Ken Jenne’s involvement with Rick Scott and how the Jenne saga may be continuing with the Scott administration and the Governor’s personnel.
While Evan may have his own life, his own history and his own ethical compass, I very much doubt that he has his own campaign. His dad is, shall we say assertive- and however Buddy Nevins got involved may have something more to do with just a matter of public service. Posting about Elaine Geller facing cancer in her family as if it’s just a campaign ploy and tagging on her business history as if the Jenne’s have nothing worth even noting in that regard is just desperate. Has your past history as a reporter taught you nothing about actual reporting?
This kind of opportunistic and slimy post serves as an example as to why we have so very few good, qualified, ethical and well-meaning candidates for office in Florida. This post also exemplifies the lowest level of spiteful and nasty political writing indicative of why some aging local reporters got fired, laid off and just plain booted in the first place. I’m not sure about your history in newspapers, Buddy, but I’m suspicious about it. Why would anyone want to run for public office when they will face unethical and opportunistic slime from the likes of Buddy Nevins?
The two posts on BrowardBeat so far regarding Elaine Geller’s candidacy really don’t serve the public good, but that’s so similar to the drek the public has been getting from the news media in America for too long now. Instead of context- such as comparing and reporting on the history of Ms. Geller’s opponent and what he’s been doing for a living over the years and what kind of personal family life he’s had and what’s motivated him to run- all we get is finger pointing and a negative slant on everything- everything except the candidate you personally want to win.
Public service is very important. Representative democracy is a serious business. I personally respect and appreciate most attempts to run for office- any office. I wouldn’t do it. I have personally called out individuals for running for the wrong reasons and for personal histories inappropriate for the public trust. I’d support any Democrat who wins the primary, and I personally like Evan Jenne a lot. I also happen to support qualified women running and getting elected, however, and Mr. Jenne had a full term in the seat. Whatever is going on in any race, however, context when discussing news and politics is always important. A basic modicum of respect is vital when that discussion bears your name on your own blog.
It’s seems such a waste of space to type here that Buddy Nevins should have some sense of shame over this post. Pasting in Ms. Geller’s tragic email to her supporters so that you can gloat should be absolutely shameful, but the smart ones in the room know that there’s likely no shaming that could get through to you, Buddy. What you did here makes your level of standards clear enough. They’re low. So low that your wishes for effective treatment and a quick recovery for Ms. Geller’s daughter is lacking- so I’ll add that here. I’m sure that friends and supporters are rallying around Elaine Geller right now. I wish her, her daughter and her family all the best under the circumstances and for the future.
Elaine Geller should take the time she needs to ensure that her daughter gets effective treatment and consistent emotional support before the Elaine Geller campaign resumes. If you can’t support her in those efforts, Buddy, then perhaps my comment can get through your moderating to express those sentiments here.
November 5th, 2013 at 9:47 pm
Thank you Andrew Markoff for your very succinct comment.
All you left off was “paid for by the Elaine Geller campaign” at the end of your 12-page screed.
November 6th, 2013 at 8:36 pm
People forget that the governor was the head of the company (HCA) that BOUGHT OUT the other company that was accused of wrongdoing. It is extremely similar to the situation now where Bank of America helped us out by “buying” Countrywide and are now forced to bear that cross. If HCA didn’t buy out the other hospitals, many Americans would have been left unserved with emergency care.
November 8th, 2013 at 11:51 am
Shame on you Mr. Nevins. Her daughter is fighting cancer. How low can you get. How much are you getting paid by the Jenne campaign or friends of Jenne?