Sasha Puchalski – Town Council

Sasha was raised in Charlestown, is a Chariho graduate, and has spent a large portion of her life exploring and learning from the rich history and beautiful natural resources that Charlestown and the region have to offer.

Sasha’s studies led her to the Pacific Northwest where she studied linguistics at Reed College and explored Portland by cycling and becoming involved in community gardening and volunteer work. After college, she returned to RI and began working as a gardener, and in aquaculture for a local oyster farm. She then moved to New York City, and began working in magazine publishing, as an editor at an academic book and journal publisher, and in the service industry. More recently, she returned to school to earn a nursing degree, and works now as a registered nurse.

As the grandchild of two families who made Charlestown their home in the 1950s and 1960s, she has had the benefit of being raised by a family that has maintained continuous residence in the town and has been involved in local affairs for nearly 70 years. Her grandfather, Matthew Puchalski, was a soil scientist working for the U.S. Soil Conservation Service. He served as a member of the Charlestown Town Council, as chairman of the Charlestown Planning Commission, and as president of the Charlestown Recreational Association. In the 1970s, he worked with others to prevent a nuclear power plant from being built on the land we now know as Ninigret Park and Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge.

Throughout her life, Sasha has been inspired by and valued her parents’ and her grandparents’ hands-on approach to public service. Sasha continues to learn from our local environment and the history of how residents have interacted with and stewarded the land and waters of the region over time. She will bring a responsible and informed approach to this intersection of civic and environmental concerns. She will be a proponent for responsible, middle-ground approaches to the needs of the local community when it comes to development and supporting the town’s businesses. She will also work to protect Rhode Islanders’ constitutionally protected right to the shore.

Her educational experiences on both the West and East Coasts, and her work experience in both urban and rural areas, have prepared her for critical and informed engagement on issues of public concern. As a nurse, advocacy is a critical skill, and Sasha will bring that approach to hearing about and advocating for the needs of the residents of the town. With a belief that robust public engagement is earned by good-faith outreach, Sasha also hopes to improve access to information on issues relevant to residents of the town.

Sasha hopes to contribute to new generational involvement in preserving the precious resources of Charlestown, in maintaining our town as a vibrant community, and in recognizing the needs of community members.