JAVEN SEArs KICKOFF party!
More than 150 Vermonters came together at Vermont National Country Club to launch a campaign focused on common sense, opportunity, and the future of Vermont. Featuring remarks from Jim Douglas, community leaders, military leaders, business owners, and supporters from across the state! Javen hopes to bring back common sense and opportunity for Vermonters in his Chittenden Southeast District and across the state!
GUEST SPEAKERS
Governor Jim Douglas
80th Governor of Vermont
Jim Douglas is an American politician who served as the 80th governor of Vermont from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party, his decades-long career in public service began immediately upon his graduation from Middlebury College when he was elected to the Vermont House of Representatives in 1972.
He went on to hold statewide offices as Vermont's Secretary of State and State Treasurer before winning four terms as governor, where he focused on economic development, environmental protection, and healthcare reform. Known for his personal popularity in a traditionally left-leaning state, Douglas also served as the chair of the National Governors Association and was appointed by President Barack Obama as co-chair of the Council of Governors in 2010.
Bruce Roy
Republican Candidate for the Vermont State Senate in the Chittenden Southeast District
Bruce Roy is a retired UVM graduate, former IBM engineer, and retired U.S. Air Force and Vermont Air National Guard Colonel who is running as a Republican for the Vermont State Senate in the Chittenden Southeast district. A long-time resident of Williston currently serving as a local Justice of the Peace, Roy previously secured the Republican nomination for the district in 2024, ultimately capturing over 16,000 votes in the general election. Campaigning as a fiscal conservative and social moderate, his 2026 platform focuses heavily on reversing unchecked government spending, addressing property tax burdens, and restoring economic affordability and public safety to Vermont by working to support Governor Phil Scott's legislative goals
Janet Metz
Chair of the Chittenden County Republican Committee
Janet Metz serves as the chair of the Chittenden County Republican Committee. Outside of her political leadership in the county, she lives and works in Bolton, Vermont, alongside her husband, Craig Metz. EnSave, Inc., an agricultural energy efficiency and resource conservation company based nearby in Richmond, Vermont.
2nd Lieutenant of the United States Marine Corps
Kyle Breen is a 2nd Lieutenant of the United States Marine Corps. A recent 2026 graduate of the University of Vermont Grossman School of Business, where he studied finance after attending both Phillips Exeter Academy and Proctor Academy. Last summer he went on to complete Officer Candidate School with the United States Marine Corps in Quantico, Virginia, an early chapter in a path shaped by discipline, academics, and service. For the last two years, he’s been coaching youth football with Javen at the South Burlington Dolphins Foundation.
Stephanie Mack
Republican Candidate for Chittenden-24 House District
Stephanie Mack, a Republican candidate running for the Chittenden-24 House district in Essex, Vermont, officially launched her campaign for the Vermont House in 2026. Mack recently sold her accounting firm and is now bringing her business experience and financial background into public service.
Bill Sayre
Radio Host, Vermont Political Commentator
Bill Sayre is a prominent Vermont conservative commentator, economist, and business leader who is widely known as the host of Common Sense Radio on The Notch FM and formally was with WDEV, a public affairs program presented by the Ethan Allen Institute. A former Federal Reserve economist, Sayre has spent decades advocating for free-market principles, economic affordability, and fiscal responsibility in Vermont. Beyond his media presence, he has deep roots in the state's working landscape as a long-time partner in the A. Johnson Company, a historic lumber mill and timberland management firm based in Bristol, and has served as past chairman of the Associated Industries of Vermont and as a board member for the Vermont Woodlands Association.
Silas Shepard
Business Owner & Football Coach
Silas Shepherd, co-owner of Liquid Stone, a local Vermont concrete and resinous coatings company, and longtime friend of Javen Sears, speaks at the official launch of Sears’ campaign for the Vermont State Senate. Shepherd grew up playing youth and high school football alongside Sears and now coaches with him in South Burlington.
rene laBerge
Former Tech Entrepreneur & Grandfather of Vermont Youth Football
“Coach” Rene LaBerge, a native of Bridport, Vermont, is a longtime entrepreneur and community leader known for founding the South Burlington Dolphins Youth Football Program in South Burlington in his mid 20s of 1967, Vermont's first ever youth football team. The program is a long lasting nonprofit foundation with over 3,000 alumni, and it continues to serve families today. Rene also owned a successful technical manufacturing company that worked with major corporations including IBM he later sold. He later coached Javen Sears during his seventh and eighth grade years in the Dolphins program.
Hunter Johnson
Student-Athlete Attending St. Lawrence University
Hunter Johnson is a student-athlete who served as the senior class president at South Burlington High School in Vermont, where he also competed in track and football. To further his athletic and academic career, he attended two of New England’s most prestigious preparatory institutions: Loomis Chaffee School in Windsor, Connecticut, where he played football, and the Westminster School in Simsbury, Connecticut a historic boarding school known for its rigorous academics and powerhouse New England prep sports programs, where he played lacrosse. Having demonstrated his versatility and leadership across multiple programs, Hunter is now headed to Canton, New York, to play collegiate football for the St. Lawrence University Saints.
Senate Campaign over last three weeks:
