Americans have collectively long felt disappointment with Congress but on the local level, members and their staffs prove quite handy for constituents who need immediate remedies to their problems with federal agencies.
Since his ascension to Congress this year, Congressman John Duarte, R-Modesto, has turned to Ceres resident Brenda Herbert to help staff his Turlock office, 90 S. First Street, as his Constituent Services Representative.
Herbert feels a great deal of satisfaction in her job knowing that she’s helping people.
“I’ve always been in public service,” said Herbert, who is Ceres born and raised. She was born in Memorial Hospital Ceres and went through all Ceres schools, graduating from Ceres High School in 1983.
This isn’t her first rodeo working for a congressman. Before becoming a staff member to three elected officials, Herbert worked in the Stanislaus County Clerk-Recorder’s Office where she issued marriage licenses, passports, swore in deputies and worked on elections. She left the county to become a paid member of Dennis Cardoza’s campaign staff during his run for California State Assembly. He won and she worked in his district office. Cardoza later ran against scandal-ridden Congressman Gary Condit in 2001, defeating him in the March 2002 primary and winning the November election to send the Merced Democrat to Washington. Herbert became part of his congressional district office.
Herbert’s time working for Cardoza ended with his loss to Jeff Denham in 2012. Soon she joined the staff in the Ceres office of then state Senator Anthony Cannella. When he was termed out in 2018, Brenda was without work and enjoyed a few years at home. Duarte tapped her to help run the Turlock office.
Herbert handles case work for Duarte’s constituents with the exception of immigration, which is handled by Nallely Moreno. Examples of constituents needing help include: veterans who are trying to get services from the federal Veterans Affairs agency; taxpayers having problems with the IRS; retirees who are dealing with Social Security matters; or those planning to travel aboard but having difficulties securing their passport to leave the country. Typically the person calling for help is “someone who doesn’t feel like their case is being heard or if they feel like they need extra assistance on something,” she noted. A congressional office can get help and answers.
“We do get answers,” said Herbert. “We try to make things happen.”
Federal agencies have 30 to 90 days to respond the office.
“I think it depends on what their workload is at the time. I’ve sent VA cases off where it’s taken a while to get a response and I’ve sent them off to where the next day I have a response.”
COVID has caused considerable delays in the issuance of passports, Herbert said, so the office is called often called to expedite matters. Herbert said the passport backlog seemed to have peaked earlier this year because she was getting five to 10 complaints per day.
“We had some young men from Madera County that play on a baseball team and their team was selected to go to Japan and play. They sent off their passport stuff and it was taking forever and so they contacted our office and one of them I got his passport to him the next day.”
That success triggered other teammates seeking help from Duarte’s staff. The team was able to make the trip to Japan. When they returned, one of the young men presented a signed baseball to Duarte at a Kerman town hall meeting as a gesture of appreciation for his help.
“That was just a good feeling seeing that kid be able to do something that meant a lot to him.”
Herbert and other staff members often attend community events and banquets, Chamber of Commerce ribbon cuttings, and holiday events to represent the congressman if he can’t personally attend. For example, she recently attended the swearing-in ceremony of new Ceres Police officers to represent Rep. Duarte. Earlier this year she represented Duarte at the 10th anniversary celebration of Lucas Dual Language Academy in Ceres.
The staff is also tasked with gleaning stories of accomplishments from newspapers and social media and sending out certificates of recognition and letters under Duarte’s signature.
Another job is fielding calls from constituents who have an idea for a new law or an opinion about legislation being considered by Congress. The local office takes a message and directs it to the D.C. staff. At times a caller can be indignant and angry, she said, but noted “once you start talking to them then they realize, okay, I’ve got a human on the other end that’ listening to me. They just want to be heard.”
While the office does deal with partisan issues, congressional staffers are expected to leave personal opinions at home.
“When you work for a member of Congress, there is no ‘this side’ or ‘this side’ because all of your constituents are treated the same. If you take the job, that all stays at home. You don’t bring your opinion to work.”
Other staff members in Duarte’s Turlock office are field representatives Gavin Cline and Christan Santos.
The Turlock office is the only district office in the entire 13th district, which extends all the way from Lathrop into the west side of Fresno County and as far south as Coalinga. Most of constituents can have their problems explained over the phone or by email instead of coming into the office. Duarte also tries to get a field representative in each city or town in his district once a month.
Herbert relates that Duarte stays in the Washington, D.C. area when in session but flies home every Thursday to spend time in the district. That means a lot of traveling in such a large district but Duarte feels that’s the only way to represent his constituents, said Herbert.
Herbert has always been involved in her hometown of Ceres. She has served on the Concerts in the Park Committee and Measure U Bond oversight committee. Besides being a member of the Soroptimists International of Ceres, Brenda also is president of the Tuolumne River Lodge board.
Her husband of 29 years, Harry Herbert recently retired from the Department of Defense. For a time, Brenda served as city clerk while Harry was the elected city treasurer.
Would she ever run for office herself? Nope, she said, preferring to “be the person behind the scenes that can help get you to where to need to be.”
