A Stronger Voice for Windham 3

Background:  I grew up on our farm in Westminster West Vermont, where my brother and his wife now run Vermont Shepherd Sheep dairy. I was involved in 4H, riding horses in the woods and developed a lifelong passion for maple sugaring. I went to the public schools of Westminster and Bellows Falls, and benefited from great teachers like Claire Oglesby, John Porter, Barbara Whitehead, Mrs. Orcut, David and Stan Johnson and many more. I went on to Harvard, graduating in 1984, then spent a year studying medieval history at Saint Andrews University in Scotland before going to Tufts Veterinary School.  As a new graduate veterinarian, I joined the Green Mountain Bovine Clinic in 1989 and have worked there ever since I took over the Clinic in 1994. We cover the farm animal needs in Windham County and the tri-state area. I will be stepping down to part-time in January.

Adrienne and I were married in 1988 and have two children, Pollaidh and Marion, who both went to the Westminster schools and the Bellows Falls Union High School and have grandchildren nearby us in Vermont.  Pollaidh works for the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board and Marion works for Windham & Windsor Housing Trust and is married to Joey Aiken of the Westminster Road Crew. 

Public Service: Over the years I have served on several public boards. For 15 years, I served on the Bellows Falls Union High School Board and for five years on the Westminster Select Board. I have also been a long-term trustee of the Westminster West Congregational Church and served on the Library Board and Windham County Farm Bureau.   I hope that my experience serving on community public boards will be helpful in the legislature where one has to listen to the opinions of others and realize that we each have our unique backgrounds and talents, and rarely have all the answers. I have attended Town Meetings since going with my mother Beverly Major, and I greatly value our local system of governance.

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Reasons for Running:  I decided to run for the legislature because I care deeply about issues facing Vermont now, including education, housing, agriculture and the environment. I also feel that we need to work hard to maintain our governance and character that makes Vermont special - our sense of trusting our neighbors and working together without bitter, partisan divisions.  I have admired the work of current legislative delegation Michelle Bos-Lun and Leslie Goldman in serving our district. Hearing that Leslie was stepping down inspired me to put in my name. 

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Legislative Focus:  Issues that are important to the residents of our area include housing, affordability education and the environment, but many of us are also concerned about those things that make Vermont unique, including its system of governance and its ability to work across party lines and to respect the will of the people who live in our towns.  Residents feel strongly that they should have a role in the governance of their local education system, and that the Town Meeting form of government should be respected as integral to the special Vermont governance model.  

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I am excited to provide choices for people in our district. That's what democracy is about. I believe anyone elected by the voters of this district will work hard to represent us.  I believe in civility and have to practice that daily with cows, and in evening meetings with people. We all have our strengths and none of us have all the answers. 

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To that end, I look forward to meeting the voters of the district and hearing about the issues that matter to them.