We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jack Bradley a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jack thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. One of the most important things small businesses can do, in our view, is to serve underserved communities that are ignored by giant corporations who often are just creating mass-market, one-size-fits-all solutions. Talk to us about how you serve an underserved community.

For 43 years I was a criminal defense attorney and represented many low and moderate income individuals at a time when they were most in need of someone to advocate for them. Four years ago, I decided to give back to the city that had given so much to me by running for mayor. The city I represent has a high percentage of low and moderate income families and I have tried to have equitable considerations define how I do my job. I have hired staff with diversity in mind and I have made board appointments by trying to appoint members of the community that most represent the diverse makeup of our community. It is my job to make sure that the underserved in our community are represented and considered in all policy matters.

Jack, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I started my career as a 4th grade teacher while attending law school in the evening. I taught for 5 years and then started to practice law as a criminal defense attorney. I began representing individuals who were in need of representation but without the funds to hire an attorney. After several years, I opened by own firm and was known as the attorney who handled the tough cases. I had one client who I felt was innocent yet was found guilty of child sexual offenses and sentenced to 30 to 90 years in prison. I never stopped fighting for her and eventually secured her release from prison after 14 years. I have appeared on shows such as Date Line, Oprah Winfrey and other news shows regarding some of my cases. After I became mayor, I was faced with the worst pandemic in 100 years and I successfully guided the city through this once in a lifetime occurrence.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I listened to what people had to tell me and then had them repeat their story and would then repeat back to them what I thought they had told me. It was not my story I was trying to sell, but helping them tell their story in the most impactful way. As mayor, I have tried to listen to the community and then do what I felt was the best path to take hoping that I was doing what was best for the most citizens in our city.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

During the pandemic, members of City Council were telling me to cut city expenses by 20% including laying off 20% of our work force. I decided there was a better way to proceed and ended up not laying off a single employee and yet saving the city $750,000 during a time when many people were not working and the economy was suffering.

Contact Info:

• Facebook: mayor jack bradley