ROCKWELL — Although Lizz Johnson has not previously held office, she hopes “to be a positive influence in the community and help foster the ‘neighbor helping neighbor’ ideal that I have experienced.”

Johnson is running for a seat on the Rockwell Board of Aldermen.

Johnson moved to Salisbury in 2014 and to Rockwell in 2017. She was looking for a friendly and welcoming community after separating from her husband, and she found that in Rockwell.

“It has a small-town feel where people know each other, but there’s still a lot of things available to do around Rockwell,” Johnson said.

Johnson has a bachelor of science degree in business administration and is a bookkeeper for The Park Academy.

In Rockwell, she is involved in United Methodist Women of First United Methodist Church, which does work supporting the nonprofit groups ARC of Rowan, Families First, and Rowan Helping Ministries.

“Really, I have been involved in being part of other organizations, and I’m at a point now where my schedule allows the opportunity,” she said. “I wanted to be a little more involved in our community.”

Johnson said she did her homework on what running for and holding office might be like, and she thinks it is the right step for her to get more involved in the community.

“I’m hoping to get a better feel for the needs of our community, what’s working and what’s not, and then have some suggestions for the things that aren’t working,” she said.

Her household is three-generational, including her father and two children. As the daughter of a veteran, she hopes to serve the military population.

“I just think that’s a segment that is underserved and undervalued, especially as they get older,” she said.

But Johnson added, “I hope to serve the community of Rockwell as a whole, not just certain segments.”