Who I am

My name is Vern Masters. I grew up in Stewartstown. I currently reside in Littleton, where I've been for almost four years. I am a barista at Starbucks and I am the North Country Hub organizer for New Hampshire Youth Movement. I have a cat named Nigel Thornberry who is very naughty and impossibly cute. I rent an apartment. I think I might owe more on my car than it's worth. I own over 20 cameras. I am an adult-diagnosed neurodivergent person. I was unhealthily obsessed with Harry Potter as a kid. I have a degree in history and political science that I will probably be paying on for the rest of my life. And I really, really care about having a government that works best for the ones who work hardest, and I'm not willing to sit down and shut up about it (and I never have).
Picture
Me and my dad, who always lifted me up in every way a parent can for their kid.

What my goals are

There's a rule in politics that your campaign should have three big focuses. So in keeping with norms, here's where my priorities are:
  • HOUSING. There's not enough of it, and there are fewer options for people to rent, buy, and stay in their homes. Let's work on that.
  • EDUCATION. Both funding and curriculum. Our kids deserve everything we can muster for them. Our state is doing its best to...not do that? What the heck?
  • INFRASTRUCTURE. Because we've been putting off some major projects for far too long. As the North Country continues to see crazy weather and so much damage from it, we need to invest in long-term solutions.

How I got here

I was that kid that wouldn't shut up about history and politics in school. I memorized all the presidents, I would steal my teacher's TIME off her desk after I finished my classwork in middle school, I shadowed one of my town selectmen in high school for an assignment on learning about the field you wanted to work in. My dad, Dana, fostered a really deep sense of civic duty in me, taking me to town meeting every year and ensuring I knew that to get what you needed, you needed to give what you could (a lesson he would begrudgingly remind himself of every time he was asked to take part in a town commission or committee). So when I had to settle into a major in college, after flip flopping around with other interests, it only made sense to fall into a program that drove my curiosity, stirred my love for reading, and that I genuinely enjoyed. I got my bachelor's degree from Concordia University in Montreal in 2017, and moved back to the region in 2019.

Why Now?

I've been filling out countless endorsement forms from various organizations, unions, and the like, and this is almost always one of the questions. And in short: if not now, when? It will almost never be the "best time" for me on a personal level, because life is crazy, and crazy expensive, and New Hampshire hates to pay anyone for their time - especially their legislature. Which is one of the problems: our legislature is made up of people who, on a whole, don't have to worry about money. And it shows. They don't have to think about what it's like for a renter living paycheck to paycheck, paying out 50% or more of their pay to a landlord who lauds the threat of eviction over their heads when they request services. They don't worry about paying for childcare, because the average age in the State House is, well, retirement age. And they don't worry about having a job that will flex to the needs of holding office, because they likely own the business where they work, and can come and go as they need to. And hey, great for them, having that kind of freedom is the helm of what we call the American Dream. But that's not where I am, or likely where I will end up in my life, and that's the reality for most folks. I'm a shifter, and in some ways it's a gift that I work my longest shifts of the week on the weekend, which gives me the flexibility to be in Concord when I'll need to be, and in the North Country the rest of the time, earning wages like the rest of us. It won't be easy - but the important things never are. And I believe at my core that representation makes its best decisions when it's run by those who are like the ones they are representing. Call me weird.

So this us thing? What's up with that?

I was the outcast kid in school. In a class of nine, I stood out as the fat kid, the one obsessed with grades, the one who wanted to read rather than play sports. It was lonely a lot of the time, and yet, somehow empowering that the thing I chose to focus on was learning when everyone around me seemed so focused on anything but. As an adult, I have learned two things, the first is that I didn't get along with the other kids because I am neurodivergent - my brain is simply hardwired differently, and I did often believe I was on another plane from everyone around me, a thought that I still carry with me on a daily basis. The second, is that I am and have always been a queer person. I was a great ally in school, an adamant supporter of our only "out" kid in high school, who happened to be my best friend, a member of our school's GSA, the whole works. Except, I was one of those kids, and I spent so much time desperately trying to fit in that I was, at some level most of the time, a hopelessly miserable person. In the last few years, I have spent significant time rewriting my narrative, carrying myself with the internal confidence I have always had but squashed so much and so often in the hopes that I would finally fit in with everyone else I was around. And the strangest thing is - the more I tear down the habits of hiding and molding myself to try to fit in, the more I fit in. Letting myself be a weirdo has brought me so much joy, and I have met so many amazing people who like me for myself. I'm finally feeling like I'm part of something, a member of the community, and not because I'm trying to be there, but because I'm simply doing the things I want and showing up as myself. And I want that for everyone.

The North Country can be an isolating place if you're one of the weird kids. But it takes so many personalities and people with diverse interests to build a functioning, healthy community that can take care of itself. Our region deserves to thrive simply because it exists and there are people here. And we all deserve to have our voices uplifted, our needs met, and to feel safe. And it starts with connecting with others. It starts with seeing the human in every person we connect with. It thrives off meeting others where they are, and helping them get where they want to go. Some call it mutual aid. Some call it networking. No matter what words you choose to use, it's all about creating the same thing: your home. It goes so far beyond the place you put your head at night. It sounds so silly, I know. But I believe in the power of collective action. There are so many more things that bind us than divide us. The only ones that are going to keep the North Country going are the North Country residents. We need to be strong and unfaltering in our pursuit of getting the resources we need to make the region a places that's thriving for everyone, not just those who can afford to privately build the place up. We have families here who have made it their home for five, six, ten generations. We are the current caretakers. We need to show up for ourselves, and show up for our kids, and their kids. We need strong voices in Concord, in Haverhill, in DC, that will do everything possible to do good by the North Country. I will never say I'm perfect, but I'm passionate about doing the work. I'm passionate about using my voice where I can.

What I've been up to

A resume, of sorts
2024 - Recipient of grant funding from the Tillotson Foundation to start local organizing with New Hampshire Youth Movement as their North Country Hub Organizer, centering our work around growing the region's understanding of civics, educating intrigued youth to be active leaders in our community, and building relations with other groups in the region working towards creating a safe, just, and equitable place for all.
2023 - One of ten candidates chosen out of over 150 applicants to be part of the first training cohort with Chloe Maxmin and Canyon Woodward as part of their new nonprofit, Dirtroad Organizing, taking the lessons and values of their incredible campaigns in rural Maine to a broader audience of rural politically active people and providing tools for successful campaigning.
2023 - Recognized for my advocacy work in housing by 603 Forward at their annual gathering, Forward Fest.
2023-2024 - assistant at AHEAD, working closely with NH Housing Finance Authority to help people apply for the NH Homeowner Assistance Fund. Acting as first-point-of-contact for many Granite Staters looking for help to keep their homes with the help of grant money given to the state as part of the federal American Rescue Plan Act, a Covid-era program.
2017 - received Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Political Science from Concordia University, Montreal, Canada
2012 - graduated from Canaan Memorial High School in Canaan, Vermont.
2011-2012 - Historian for the New England and Bermuda District of Key Club International, the high school subsect of Kiwanis International, a nonprofit founded with the mission of providing opportunities for our youth​.

Learn more about my views on the issues you care about​