Support Stacy Brenner

To the Editor,

As a resident of this community for 27 years who cares deeply about its future, I am writing to encourage you to join me in supporting, and more importantly, voting for, Stacy Brenner for State Senate.

I have been struck by Stacy’s warmth, thoughtfulness and commitment to our community. As both a small business person (Stacy and her husband operate Broadturn Farm) and health care professional (Stacy also is a nurse/midwife), she is particularly well suited to deal with the challenges ahead as we move forward from this crisis and use the opportunity to build a brighter, more-inclusive future. I believe she will initiate and support measures to promote the environment, education and health and wellness while balancing the needs of our business community and economic development.

For these reasons, please join me in supporting Stacy Brenner as our next Senator for District 30.

Melissa Murphy

Scarborough

Support public schools

To the editor,

Funding is not the only factor when it comes to students’ success in school, but it is a critical one. It is especially critical during a pandemic when we must balance academic learning with physical safety. Resources can only be stretched so far and due to increasing enrollment, crowded schools, and aging facilities we have reached a breaking point.

If Scarborough chooses to coast on a reputation of strong schools that is not backed up with support and funding from the community at large we risk losing talented teachers, vital services, and a strong workforce. It is time to drop the myth that teachers are overpaid and replace it with a deep appreciation for what they and our schools provide to everyone in this town regardless of our station in life.

The public-school system is the cornerstone of building a productive workforce and informed citizenry. These students will be integral in rebuilding our economy and we all need them to have the tools to contribute. Our schools are full and operating in temporary classrooms. The town needs to hire new teachers for the growing population and the budget numbers reflect that need. Our community supported excellence in our local government by passing bonds for the new municipal building and now we need to support excellence in our schools through this increased budget.

Our country’s motto is “e pluribus unum” – out of many, we are one. The struggle we all feel right now can divide us or make us stronger. There are elderly members of our town that want to fund our schools, there are parents that may not. There are teachers that are financially ok right now, and some that are not. There are members of our town living paycheck to paycheck that will vote to increase our taxes because they know student excellence benefits their bottom line, and there are wealthy residents that would rather keep what they earn. You do not need to think one way because of your politics, race, class, or family situation. What you do need to think about is how we can take care of our community.

It is time to start showing up for each other, and the first step is to fund our schools to take care of our children who, in turn, will care for us.

Lindsay Diminick
Scarborough

Vote for Anne Carney

To the editor,

Please consider joining us in voting for Anne Carney for State Senate representing District 29 on July 14th in the Democratic primary. Anne embodies what we admire in good leadership. She is smart, empathetic, an excellent listener, and she has significant experience in working towards thoughtful solutions regarding education, climate change, healthcare, and economic security for all Mainers. As a state representative in Augusta, Anne worked tirelessly on legislation that protected pregnant women in the workplace, enabled children to receive affordable health care, and she championed laws that shielded vulnerable Mainers from financial crimes.

Anne gives of herself in many arenas. During her time as a pro bono lawyer for Pine Tree Legal, Anne helped low-income residents access our legal system. As a passionate president of the Cape Elizabeth Land Trust, Anne protected many green spaces for all Cape Elizabeth residents to enjoy. And keeping in mind her strong focus on wellness, Anne has collaborated on legislation that targets the restriction of adolescent e-cigarette use. Throughout it all, Anne has put people first.

Right now, in this unprecedented time, it is critical that we elect someone with state government experience as we work quickly to repair damage done by the pandemic. Anne is the right person for this work.

Please consider casting your vote in the Democratic primary on July 14th for Anne Carney for State Senate District 29.

Mary and Craig Brett

Approve Sari Greene

To the editor,

Sari Greene has the right combination of the attributes needed to represent the communities of Scarborough, Cape Elizabeth, and South Portland in the Maine Senate.

She is an entrepreneur, business leader, and active volunteer in many service-oriented organizations. In addition to her competence, service attitude, and transparence, I like her high energy level and the way she interacts with people. She is highly rational, inclusive, and fair-minded. She thinks through the consequences of decisions and behavior and finds the best workable solutions.

The next legislature will be charged with responding to the pandemic, recovering and developing the economy, and healing the rifts in our social fabric. That takes competent, courageous, compassionate, and upright people. People who have a true service attitude. Sari has what it takes. I urge you to vote for Sari in the July Democratic primary and then again in November.

Laurenz Schmidt

Support school budget

To the editor,

Scarborough’s Board of Education is encouraging a “yes” vote in the school budget referendum on July 14th. Although I share board members’ disappointment in the final numbers, I believe them when they say that there’s nowhere to go but down if the referendum fails.

If that happens, teachers and administrators will be forced to continue to divide their attention between planning for a safe reopening and figuring out ways to do even more with even less. They’ve already made difficult choices like rolling back plans to make playgrounds more accessible for students with disabilities and reducing staff through administrative lay-offs, a few non-renewals, and not back-filling some retirements. However, they also secured a commitment to funding $556,000 worth of COVID-19 related expenses. It’s not enough, but it’s a start.

SmartTaxes’ annual effort to force the budget down as low as it will go is in full swing, and any “no” vote will be viewed by this council as an approval of that goal. One councilor opined that taxes need to be at rock bottom because some residents are trying to survive without any income. While many economists disagree with his deduction, almost all recognize that economic recovery hinges on finding ways to keep children safe while their parents return to work.

Scarborough families have demonstrated incredible patience and resilience during the last few months, and we know the year ahead will be challenging. This isn’t a perfect budget, but – just like those cloth masks we don to safeguard our neighbors – it’s all we’ve got right now.

Erin Rowan
Scarborough