There’s nothing worse than having that gut-wrenching feeling in the pit of your stomach. The one that happens when you’re having an uncomfortable conversation. For me, this recently happened when I heard a friend from a neighboring town remark, “You sent your kids to school in Freeport? Why didn’t you just move?”

Freeport used to be a destination. A place that families moved to when they wanted the small-town feel of a coastal Maine community, and the diversity of central Maine. When my family and I moved to Freeport, we relished this, and my children thrived. They developed lifelong bonds with great friends, and they received a good education.

Of course, this was pre-RSU. The state-mandated school consolidation law brought much of this to a halt. The RSU model pitted formerly cordial neighbors against each other. The one-size-fits-all approach has watered down the quality of our schools. You can feel the impact of this top-down approach in all four of our schools. I cringe when people in town discuss education, and I hear them remark, “Well, I can always send the kids to private school.”

Freeport can do better. We need to ask ourselves if this consolidated school system is really working. Are the children better off than they were five years ago? Have our taxpayers seen their taxes go down? Is this top-heavy system going to continue to put neighbors at odds against each other?

I’m encouraged to hear people speaking openly about voting yes, and embracing the possibilities that could open back up for us. We can continue to work with our neighbors, as we did five short years ago. We can end the divisive budget battles, and start visioning what Freeport wants to be in the next five years.

The Freeport I moved to was confident and was never afraid to step up to the next challenge. I’m optimistic that we’ll have the resolve to do so again. Please join me in voting “Yes for Freeport” on Nov. 4.

Lynn Easler

Freeport