Dear Editor,
With regret, I decided earlier this year for personal reasons not to seek re-election for my seat representing the First Ward on Chestertown’s Town Council. It has been an honor and a great pleasure to serve the residents of my district for the last four years. The fact that three worthy candidates have chosen to run for election to the First Ward seat speaks volumes about the love that people feel for this community and the importance of public service, even at the most local level.
I have carefully considered the issues currently facing the Town and the gifts that each of the three candidates might bring to the position of Council member if elected. I wish to publicly endorse the candidacy of Owen Bailey for the following reasons:
Firstly, Owen Bailey has lived in Chestertown for essentially his entire life. He has a deep understanding of, and commitment to, this community. From the moment he first spoke to me about his interest in running for election he emphasized that this is something he has always been committed to.
Secondly, I know Owen to be a thoughtful person who will carefully consider all sides of an issue, and will work as a team player with other members of Council, and with our skilled and loyal Town staff. I did not expect some of the rich relationships that I have developed while serving on the Council, even when we did not always agree with one another. I believe that Owen Bailey will be open to dialogue and compromise when needed in order to serve the interests of all of our community, but especially those of the First Ward.
Finally, and most important to me, I think it is important to have youth and energy on the Town Council. I was proud to serve with Sam Shoge who, regrettably, must also give up his seat. Sam spearheaded our efforts in several areas like the complete redesign and modernization of our web site, the creation of a group for young professionals in Kent County, the restoration of a park for young families in the Third Ward, and the ongoing attempts to improve WiFi and cellular service in town. These are all issues that younger residents understand better than we seniors! In interviews with the press last week, all three candidates mentioned the importance of attracting and keeping young families in Chestertown. How better to do that than including this generation in the Town Council? Without such representation, the average age of the Council members will be much closer to 70 than 40 or even 50!
For these reasons, and more, I am proud to endorse Owen Bailey as the next First Ward member on Chestertown’s Town Council. I urge all readers to vote for him, but, whatever you do, please exercise your right to vote on November 7th.
Elizabeth “Liz” Gross
First Ward representative
Town Council
Carol Schroeder says
I was lucky to work with Owen when many of us organized the Chestertown Book Festival. He was our President and entertained all opinions and discussions with the utmost fairness and diplomacy. His dedication was always apparent. I agree that he would make a wonderful Council member.