Heather Asiyanbi, Patch Staff

All I've really wanted to do was write for a living, and I've been lucky enough to have been able to do just that for most of my professional life. Whether I was working Features for the Daily Herald, Illinois' 3rd largest daily, covering Mount Pleasant and Sturtevant as a stringer for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel or writing press releases for clients at a public relations agency, I've spent nearly my entire career writing. Being an editor for Patch brings me back full time to news and newspapers (in a fashion), and I couldn't be happier!

Your Beliefs

At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible because human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal their beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. This disclosure is not a license for you to inject your beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that your beliefs are on the record will cause you to be ever mindful to write, report and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you ever see evidence that we failed in this mission, please let us know.

Politics 

How would you describe your political beliefs? Are you registered with a certain party?

I am not registered to any party and consider myself an independent, voting for the candidate(s) I feel are most aligned with my views.

Religion

How religious would you consider yourself? 

I believe in God.

Local Hot-Button Issues

What do you think are the most important issues facing the community?

Growth, development, taxes, the school system, village leadership, jobs/unemployment and home values seem to dominate conversations and concerns across the board.

Where do you stand on each of these issues?

I don't stand anywhere on the issues. My job is to report the facts as accurately and as objectively as possible so the reader can decide where he/she stands.