My wife and I were both excited and nervous when we secured jobs in Utah this past summer. We didn’t know anyone in the state, and moving across the country is stressful.

A family member put me in touch with Shireen Ghorbani. Without hesitation and with little introduction, she offered to let us stay with her and her family while we found a lease to sign. She and her husband cooked us dinner. She introduced us to other like-minded young professionals. Shireen was our advocate and guide in that unsteady time in our lives simply because we needed one. My mother always told me you find out who people really are when they have nothing to gain. Shireen had nothing to gain, and she went above and beyond for us anyway. That’s just who she is.

It is now 2018, and Shireen Ghorbani is running to represent Utah’s 2nd Congressional District. Our country finds itself in unsteady times, and we need elected officials who would work to stabilize the chaos and not guide us deeper into echo chambers one tweet at a time. If that’s how Ghorbani advocates for two strangers, imagine how hard she’d work for Utah.

Bryan LaBore, Salt Lake City