About the Candidate
About the Candidate: Jaymin Patel.
Coffee With A Purpose
There's a lot of words on this website. If you prefer a video to learn more, please consider listening to my session with the Coffee With a Purpose gang. Otherwise, a bit about my history is readable below.
From the Beginning.
I take great pride in being a 20 year resident of Natick, where I have observed directly the community’s values that I consider home. Natick residents wholeheartedly embraced my family when we relocated and established a small convenience store here in 2004. In addition to the campaign for State Rep, my attention is focused on an aluminum water bottle startup with a mission to reduce single use plastic water bottle usage, protecting our bodies and our environment from microplastics. My journey as an entrepreneur began during my Natick High School days, where I learned invaluable lessons from my parents—lessons rooted in an unwavering work ethic. Working for, and now with, them has been the most rewarding experience of my life.
Over subsequent years, I have consistently contributed to and championed for our family-owned enterprises. Whether during my college summer breaks or between various employment opportunities, I’ve played a pivotal role in business growth, resulting in the successful launch of two new ventures. A valuable lesson I have gleaned from these business ventures is that fundamentally, all aspects of life can be distilled to a balance of costs and benefits. Each benefit is accompanied by a corresponding cost, and to optimize these advantages, every decision must be deliberate and strategic. Failing to allocate resources with precision at each juncture jeopardizes success and progress. Regrettably, our government has faced operational challenges for quite some time now. Had it been functioning optimally, allocating resources to prioritize affordable education, housing, and healthcare would have been a priority.
I've had direct experience with the challenges faced by working-class individuals, their day-to-day struggles, concerns, and priorities. As a result, I understand that representing the working class means being attuned to their voices and advocating for policies that address these specific needs regarding affordability in housing, healthcare, and education. I don't just empathize with these concerns, I share these struggles, complaints, and worries myself. I am well suited to advocate for the community's needs because they are also my needs.
'Representing the working-class' might just be a slogan for career politicians; but for me, it’s about understanding their realities, advocating for their interests, and working tirelessly to improve their quality of life. This commitment to a stronger, more robust, middle class is what drives me to seek the role of state representative. When elected, I will prioritize things that matter most to the average family: making education, housing, and access to healthcare more affordable for every Massachusetts resident.
Education & Work
As an immigrant, my family made a deliberate choice to move to America, specifically Massachusetts, in pursuit of better educational opportunities. I seized this opportunity wholeheartedly. After receiving a comprehensive education at Natick High School, I went on to earn dual degrees: a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. This undergraduate education equipped me with the knowledge and critical thinking skills necessary to address complex issues from both scientific and logical perspectives.
My analytical thinking and critical reasoning abilities were further honed during my graduate studies. I obtained a Master of Science in Bioethics (M.Sc.) through a collaborative program between Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Cardozo Law. Additionally, I completed a certificate program in Adaptive Negotiation and Conflict Resolution at Columbia University’s International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (ICCCR).
Despite the financial challenges, I remain committed to lifelong learning. If it were more affordable, I would eagerly pursue additional fields of study. I firmly believe that an educated population benefits society as a whole, and making education—from pre-K to post-secondary—more accessible should be a universal priority.
Though I (partially) own and help manage several small local businesses, mainly C-stores, my friends and I have recently founded a startup with a mission to reduce single use plastic water bottle waste and reduce microplastics in our bodies. By providing refillable alternatives that are made from aluminum, an infinitely recyclable eco-friendly material, we hope to do our part in reducing plastics in our environment. We’re still very new but you can find us in just over 50 independent retailers so far. I take pride in inheriting my entrepreneurial spirit from my parents, who instilled in me the belief that it’s not what you do to earn a living that defines you, but how you go about it.
Over the past 16 years of my adulthood, I’ve transitioned from being an undergrad student, to a grad student, to a small business owner, to a husband, and now to a father of a 3 year old girl. And to be honest, much of this has been overwhelming. Keeping up with rising education and housing costs, covid and inflation has been challenging (to say the least). Having focused much of my time and energy into my personal development and obligations towards our family businesses over the past decade, I want to extend my efforts now to the community. Like many Natick residents I’ve spoken to, I too have lost hope that the next generation will be better off and that is one of the main reasons why I’m running for office this year. Though I have held various jobs over the years and volunteered when I can, this will be my first elected office should I prevail. I hope to follow in Alexandria Ocasio Cortez’s and Diana DiZoglio’s footsteps in offering an alternative (more progressive) path and hope that it resonates with enough constituents to give me the opportunity to help build a Massachusetts where everyone thrives.
My brother, cousins and I celebrating my graduation at UMass Amherst.
My wife Kosha, my daughter Kaya, and I at the Taj Mahal.
My sources of endless joy: My nephew, niece, and daughter.
Family
In March of 2018, my wife Kosha and I tied the knot, and recently, we celebrated our six-year wedding anniversary. Our delightful daughter, Kaya (affectionately known as ‘Kookie’), will turn three this July. Our bustling household includes not only the three of us but also my parents, Anil and Jyoti, along with my brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew—all under one roof. As you might imagine, our home brims with both joy and chaos, a lively blend of shared moments and occasional challenges.
Living in a joint family has its complexities—the ups and downs, the stresses, and the unspoken implications. Yet, we consciously choose this arrangement. For us, it’s about creating lasting memories and redefining the essence of family. The operative word here is ‘choose.’ Unfortunately, not everyone has that luxury. Many young adults and families grapple with the harsh reality of unaffordable rents and the struggle to meet basic needs, even with dual incomes. Their dreams of a nuclear family with a place to call their own often remain unfulfilled.
Over the years, I’ve witnessed friends, family, and fellow residents struggle for basic human rights—frustrated by the lack of affordable housing, education, and accessible healthcare. I’ve seen firsthand how policy decisions (or the lack thereof) impact everyday middle-class families, the tough decisions they are forced to make, and their freedom of choice diminish. Now, as the representative from the 5th Middlesex, I’m committed to proposing and supporting legislative policies and actionable measures that address the rising costs of education, medication, and housing. Our elected leaders, both local and federal, have fallen short in these areas over the past few decades. While I hope it’s not too late for my generation, I refuse to stand idly by and let the next generation face the same challenges and hardships. Our children deserve a better society and brighter futures; maintaining the status quo is simply not an option.