Don Gaetz to run for Office of Florida Senator

Don Gaetz

Okaloosa Superintendent of Schools Don Gaetz announced today that he will be a candidate for the Florida Senate in the September, 2006, primary election.

If elected, Gaetz, 57, will succeed Senator Charlie Clary (RDestin), who is term limited.

The 4th Senate District follows US Highway 98 from Perdido Key at the Alabama-Florida border to Mexico Beach east of Panama City. It includes the coastal areas of Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton and Bay counties.

Gaetz will serve as Superintendent until November, 2006.

A lifelong Republican, Gaetz promises he will be "the strongest voice in the Senate for less government, more personal freedom, more local control, and better management."

Gaetz says serving in the Senate is an opportunity to represent the area’s conservative values in statewide issues, but his equal focus will be to champion Northwest Florida interests and "open some windows facing west in the Florida Capitol."

He says one of his first education priorities will be to push for change in the state’s school funding formula.

Gaetz is also well-prepared to deal with another major issue facing the Florida Legislature in the next several sessions - Medicaid and health care reform.

As President and Chairman of the Board of the National Hospice Organization, he co-authored landmark federal legislation that improved health services and reduced costs for care of the terminally ill, elderly, disabled and their families. Gaetz is credited as one of the individuals most responsible for congressional passage of the Medicare and Medicaid Hospice Benefits.

Gaetz said he would use his Senate position and extensive private business experience to help develop regional strategies and consensus to address transportation and growth management problems that have gotten worse in recent years.

Gaetz will bring a lifetime of service to the Florida Senate. He is the recipient of numerous awards for charitable leadership including Florida Special Olympics Humanitarian of the Year, Leukemia Society of America Person of the Year, Citizen of the Year from the Association for Retarded Citizens, the Seaside Town Builder Award for developing that community’s unique governance and neighborhood structure, and the Senatorial Medal of Freedom from the United States Senate.

His community involvement includes Boy Scouts, Twin Cities Youth Baseball, Salvation Army, Covenant Hospice Foundation, Chamber of Commerce and volunteering in his children’s schools.

He is the recipient of the alumni award for lifetime achievement from his alma mater, Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota, where he served as student body president, was national oratory and debate champion, and graduated with a degree in religion and political science. He also earned a masters in public administration.

Don is a member of St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Niceville.

Don and his wife, Vicky, live in Niceville and have two children. Matthew and Erin.