1. What motivated you to run for office this year, and what do you hope to accomplish if elected?
“What motivates me is that I want to be a bigger part of my community. What I’d like to accomplish is to help our community to become a little more cohesive. It’s so important for us to know very clearly where our police department is going in the future, and I’d also like to work them and also with the fire department to see what more can we do to make it more cohesive for both of these critical groups of dedicated public servants. We need them! We need them in case of an emergency, so we must make our relationship with them better. I am also a proponent for our schools because I know we have great schools, they deserve our attention and support.”
2. What do you see as the single biggest issue facing East Lyme right now?
“I believe it is the fire department. Once I let it be known that I’ve been seeking this elected position on the Board of Selectmen, I’ve gotten quite a few phone calls from people questioning the recent hiring of a few captains and whether that’s the right move for the department. What can we do to make the relationship between the volunteers, and the new staff hires at our Fire Department more cohesive? A lot, and I intend to do just that.”
3. How would you balance keeping our town affordable with maintaining strong schools, services, and infrastructure?
“That’s such a hard question and important question at the same time. I would say that I am absolutely determined to help find any unnecessary waste in our town spending. Having responsible growth is critical and I intend to spend as much time as is needed on ensuring that the decisions we make as a Board are efficient and financially prudent ones. That will be such a critical key to helping our magnificent East Lyme community become affordable for all, including young families just starting out along with senior families and singles who must work within a fixed income. So much in our world is not really affordable these days, it will be our job to make sure that East Lyme is!”
4. What experience or perspective do you bring that you feel will help you serve effectively on the Board of Selectmen?
“I have been on our East Lyme Planning Commission for a number of years. I have learned so much from those meetings and so I know I’ll bring that knowledge into my everyday life on the BOS. It has helped me to understand the growth needs—and the limitations on growth—within our community. In my professional life, I’ve been fortunate to work in the real estate industry, which has given me a very broad depth of knowledge of our own community needs are, and also how we compare to other surrounding towns in Southeastern Connecticut. I’ve worked in the public realm my whole adult life, and I’m very level-headed in my approach to our public challenges. I look forward to bringing my skills to the Board.”
5. How do you think local government can do a better job of listening to residents and building trust?
“We need to hold more public forums for people to come and ask their questions. For example, the leadership of our Police and Fire Departments could really benefit both their individual departments and also our entire community if we begin to hold more of these public discussions. I really don’t know why our fantastic police volunteers have not been getting together with the leadership of the Police Department so they work through the many challenges we face, and everybody can share their own views? What are their needs, what do they have to have in order to be successful? We count on them to be a vital part of our community. Is there some kind of incentive that we can offer them, so they keep helping out our paid officers? I’m so happy that we have a new Chief at the Police Department, but I have to say that I would really like for him to get out there and have a conversation with people; these are the kinds of communication priorities that we are going to do moving forward to make sure this doesn’t happen.”
6. What’s your favorite spot in East Lyme or Niantic, and why?
“Oh my. Is it bad if I say my house? Oh gosh, I have so many! I’m gonna say Smokey’s Bar & Restaurant, only because when I go there, I know so many people, it’s such a friendly place that I can just relax and also spend lots of times with some really nice people, from so many walks of life. Also, I really enjoy going to our playhouse on Main Street in Niantic, they have great stuff for everybody to enjoy and they do it really, really well!”
7. If you could plan a perfect Saturday in East Lyme, what would it include?
“Being with my grandchildren probably just hanging out with them for every possible second that I can at my house in Pine Grove.”
8. What is one local business you think everyone in town should know about and support?
“That’s tough because I like so many! Maybe I’ll say that it is Dev’s Restaurant in Niantic, because the owner has been such an outspoken supportive of a philosophy that I really like: “If you support me, then I’ll support you!”. And I really feel like that’s such an important way for us all to behave in this day and age, we need more people to act like that!”
10. If East Lyme had a town mascot, what would you nominate?
“Whatever represents resilience, like a giant tortoise! We’re tough like that in East Lyme!”
11. Campaigning can be stressful -- what’s your go-to comfort food or snack during the season?
“Can it be an adult beverage? Like maybe a cold beer?!”
12. If you could instantly become an expert in any completely unrelated field (music, carpentry, juggling chainsaws), what would it be?
“The law.”
15. When you need a laugh, what’s your favorite guilty pleasure?
“I Love Lucy, she is just so clean, and fun and she’s just such a natural comic, she’s real. I love her. I love Lucy!”