Paul Vallas has a large but beautiful family with his lovely wife Sharon Vallas. Paul and Sharon Vallas tied the knot in 1953.
Paul Gust Vallas was born on 10th June 1953 and he grew up in the Roseland neighborhood on the south side of Chicago. Paul is the grandson of Greek Immigrants.
Vallas is an American politician and a former education superintendent. Besides, he has served as the superintendent of Bridgeport Public Schools and the Recovery School District, Louisiana.
He was the CEO of both the School District of Philadelphia and the Chicago Public Schools. Apart from that he is also a former budget director in Chicago.
He completed his education at Carl Sandburg High School. He attended Moraine Valley Community College and graduated from Western Illinois University with a bachelor’s degree in history and a master’s degree in political science along with a teaching certificate.
Paul Vallas Family Members
Paul Vallas has a huge family with three children named Gus Vallas, Mark Vallas and Paul Jr. Vallas with Sharon. His second son Gus is a Police officer.
The couple become a grandparent recently. They have an adorable grandchild named Konstantinos Vallas in 2022. Paul owned and ran a Greek restaurant where all of Vallas members worked.
They claimed to permanently reside in south suburban Palos Height since 2009. To take care of Sharon’s elderly parents and Paul’s 94-year-old mother. However, Paul relocated from Lincoln Park to Bridgeport in January 2022 to make it convenient for the new campaign.
Paul Vallas Son Involved In The San Antonio Case Of Shooting A Man
According to sources Paul Vallas’ son Gus Vallas was reported for violence in shooting a man in Texas in 2022. The case is in need of a full investigation.
The article punished by the Triibe Wednesday labeled Gus as one of three cops who fired nine bullets on Kevin Donel Jonson Jr. Jonson was convicted for parole and a felony weapons charge at the same time.
The police officers were chasing Jonshon who was riding a bike and then abscond towards the embankment of a creek. When the officers realized that Jonson had a gun with him, it alarmed them and Jonshon was shooted immediately nine times in a row.
Regarding the shooting incident, Paul mentioned his wife telling him to stop complaining. As of four years ago, no one was paying attention to him. He said that he had pretty thick skin and could withstand just about anything.
But not falsely alleging his son. As the controversy involves Gus in the deadly shooting of a 28-years old Jonson in San Antonio in March by three cops. Paul said as they were involved in a shooting.
Gus was not found to be guilty of violence or violation of policy and he had resumed his duty already. Apart from Gus, the other two officers also resumed their duty as well.
Paul was not one to sit back and let the controversy become an issue for the campaign by his opponents who are just waiting to depict the deadly shooting case as a San Antonio version of the Chicago police shooting of Laquan McDonald.
In defense, he states his son is a tactical officer in San Antonio. He is practically in danger every single day. He said that his son is an extraordinary police officer. During a private conversation with Gus, Paul knows about his boy’s pain. He didn’t want to disclose more information regarding his son as that’s a family matter.
He mentions that his elder son, Paul is a police officer in Wheeling. He came home from serving as a combat medic in Afghanistan. Paul Jr. threw all the medicines he had been ordered for his injuries into the garbage. Just because he didn’t want to delay by medicating himself. His heart aches when he thinks about his elder son’s injuries and certainly went through his own post-traumatic stress or middle one’s pain.
Paul And Sharon Lost Their Son Mark Due To Opioid Abuse
Paul and Sharon lost their son Mark due to opioid abuse in 24 February 2019. Mark Vallas left this world just at the age of 24.
Mark breathed his last breath on Saturday at a substance abuse center in Huntington Beach, California. His sudden demise shocked the entire Vallas family.
Just right after the anniversary of Mark’s departure, Paul Vallas will be heading into a voting booth. Anticipating getting a chance to govern Chicago city. It is undeniably heartwrenching to lose a son when battling against addiction to opioids.
Regarding Mark’s departure, Paul said that Mark had left clean. He had already left the rehabilitation center and was living in a group home. With the unfortunate turn of events, Mark went to sleep and then he never woke up again.
As per Paul, Mark stops breathing due to an enlarged heart as the disastrous effects of long-term addiction since high school.
Losing one of three boys is really ill-fated turn of events for the couple, and we can understand where he comes from. He said that he didn’t want to talk about this ill-fated accident as it was difficult for him. Another reason is that it seems like a political thing.
Paul said that Addiction not only breaks down the body, but it breaks families too. His son’s departure became an inspiration for him to fight for public office. His son visited around 20 rehab centers and recovery clinics to get rid of addiction.
Paul expressed his sympathy for those who could not afford to access the help, awfully. He said that the number of opioid addiction overdose deaths rivals the 581 murders in Chicago in 2016 just by looking at the statistics. He added that it’s a crucial issue that demands to be addressed, and the issue is autonomous.
Paul found startling annotations written in Mark’s Bible, with old movie ticket stubs full of buckets, and the memoir of a coat given by his son to a destitute person on skid row which revealed his son in a new way in his eyes.
Paul states that their kids are much deeper than what they grasp. Regrettably, he said that he couldn’t know his son better till the time his son left him and he had to go through Mark’s notebook during his rehabilitation.
Paul Vallas Is Going To Participate In Mayor Election In Chicago
Paul disclosed his candidacy for mayor in Chicago one more time in the 2023 election primarily on 28th February. He is facing incumbent Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
Talking about his early career, Paul led the Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission from 1985 to 1990. Then he remained as Chicago municipal budget director under Mayor Richard M. Daley till 1993.
Vallas served as CEO of the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) from 1995 to 2001. He was cited by President Bill Clinton for raising test scores, balancing the budget, instituting various new programs. Including imperative summer school and after-school programs and broadening alternatives, character and magnet schools.
Paul ran for governor as a Democrat in 2002, albeit, painstakingly failing in the primary election to Rod Blagojevich. Later, he engaged with schools in Philadelphia, Louisiana, Bridgeport and Conn.
He filed to become a candidate in the 2019 election for Chicago mayor in March 2018. He was seamlessly regarded as the strong opponent to official Rahm Emanuel, who was pursuing re-election at the time. When Rahm withdrew from the candidacy, the competition became tough due to the participation of several eminent candidates.
He claimed that he assisted in turning around the schools system and his leadership left the school in better shape, and the schools were healthier under his command than in 2019. He vowed to combat political graft in Chicago City Hall.
As Paul has been a caviler of Lightfoot administration to begin with, over what he portrays as his shortcoming in the accountability in the rise of crime and violence in the city.
A number of nationally prominent experts including Joe Trippi as its senior strategist and media advisor, along with pollster Mark Mellman were hired for his campaign.
He has enfolded his candidacy on the crime issue and vowed that he would expand the length of the school day and the school year both. He also vowed to give 100 percent choice to parents as to what schools their children are going to attend.
Even though he is being portrayed as an old-fashioned or a politically moderate candidate, he received significant campaign donations from sources that are regarded as politically conservative.
Gust Vallas is proud to be endorsed by the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board and majestically leading elected officials and advocacy teams.