Barbara Cooper

Um, and then it was, uh, six years ago when, uh, Plains All American and Valero Energy Corporation tried to build a crude oil pipeline through our neighborhood, uh, that I really got engaged in community organizing, uh, to protect our aquifer, uh, and to protect people's land from, uh, misuse of eminent domain by a private company.

And my mentor, uh, Dr. Barbara Cooper, who was the state representative before then, before me, uh, she was really active in helping us, uh, to fight that alongside my family.

And then we were successful.

Uh, and I've been doing work to protect our environment, uh, since then.