EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the last of six profiles of 2017 mayoral candidates we will be publishing before the Stranger Election Control Board announces its endorsements.
Jessyn Farrell came into the world with a hole in her heart the size of a quarter.
Growing up in Seattle’s Lake City neighborhood, Farrell’s heart condition prevented her from running and skipping with kids her age. At age 7, doctors at Seattle Children’s Hospital performed a rare surgery, funded by the hospital’s foundation because her parents couldn’t afford the procedure otherwise.
“I spent a lot of time literally being left behind,” Farrell, a 43-year-old former legislator, tells a crowd of supporters as she kicks off her campaign for mayor at Yesler Community Center. On a Sunday afternoon, sun pours through the windows onto a crowd studded with local Democratic elected officials and the sound of fussy children.
