MIDDLEBORO — After years of receiving help from the Middleboro Public Schools, newcomer Abbie Gonzalez is ready to lend a hand as he joins the race for Middleboro School Committee.

Originally from New York City, Gonzalez moved to Middleboro 13 years ago for a job, and works as a freelancer doing technology consulting. Alongside his work in the tech field, he is on the board for a non-profit in Springfield that focuses on digital equity. Gonzalez helps to get technology equipment to those who cannot afford or access it.

Now, he wants to help the committee and the community of Middleboro.

As a parent, Gonzalez has a concern for communication, and wants to make sure that everyone is being heard and served appropriately. He likened having a seat on the committee to being a part of customer service.

“We’re representing the people in the town for their children, and you’re helping them figure it all out — where to get information from and communicating information. That’s something I enjoy doing, for better or for worse,” he said.

Gonzalez has two children within the Middleboro Public Schools system and knows of the controversies that have occurred. Recently, Superintendent Carolyn Lyons sought a position within the Mansfield School District and received some backlash from the community via social media.

Having a personal connection with Lyons, Gonzalez said he is willing to see both sides and wants to understand those strong opinions.

In 2021, when the school opened back up for in-person learning after the Covid pandemic, Gonzalez’s child could not attend due to existing health issues. He said Lyons helped ease his worries and came up with options to help ensure his child's safety.

Having grown up distrusting school systems due to a strict conservative household, he moved to Middleboro with a negative attitude toward school districts. He said he came with the assumption that he was the only one who cared for the wellbeing of his children.

“That’s not how things work. It was within the boundaries that they had, but it was, ‘this is the support we could give you, we can make this work, we could get people safe,’ ” Gonzalez said. “And I still feel that my kids are alive because of that.”

If elected, Gonzalez wants to ensure safety for the students of the district and to make sure that children can deal with their own personal issues and not have to worry about problems beyond their control.

Attending high school in New York City during 9/11, he worries about big events and laws affecting kids when they already have enough on their plates. Gonzalez said he wants to stop the issues before they reach the children.

As an example, he brought up the recent cancellation of federal funding that provided healthy food to schools in Massachusetts.

Gonzalez believes it is the role of the school committee to address those issues before they become worries for the students, noting they have enough to worry about.

“Their school issues, friend issues and all those pressures they have every day. Now they have to think, ‘How am I going to eat lunch?’ ” he said.

The Middleboro School Committee elections will be held on Saturday, April 5 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Gonzalez is running against incumbent Christopher Benson and newcomer Shannon Breen.