This run for selectman has two strong candidates. How does one choose between the two? My vote goes to Marie for these reasons:
She knows our town fiscally in its minutiae. With her four years on the Finance Committee she knows where cost savings can be made now, not just for the long term. She has exceptional fiscal skills, including the ability to be hard-line about cost issues. She is deeply embedded in our town, with two children still at the elementary school. This perspective is important in this town, and only one other selectman of five has children still in the system. Marie has impressive experience in both the private sector and town politics. The two are separate learning curves—one does not necessarily inform the other; they require different strategies. Marie understands the necessity for consensus-building and not just leadership in the selectman role; she is tireless on this subject. She works well with adversity to build a team spirit. This is her second run for selectman. That is the kind of staying power and determination our town needs.
My vote goes to Marie Sobalvarro, and I encourage everyone to look closely at this 2009 run as a chance to grab her talent for our town. Quick-fix strategies have been failing. We need steady, thoughtful planning, with someone who really knows and understands our town. We need Marie Sobalvarro.
Belinda Friedrich
Littleton Road
