To the editor:

It was a great honor and privilege to have my name placed on the ballot. I introduced myself (Stacey Gallagher Tully, candidate for State Representative for the 9th Middlesex District) thousands of times, but it never got old. In fact, it was energizing and refreshing.

Meeting so many great people and families—the hearts of our communities—along the campaign trail was extremely rewarding. I was humbled each and every day by the outpouring of support from so many different corners of the 9th district. Engaging conversations with so many people at their doors, at community events, in local grocery stores—sharing personal stories and ideas and concerns—was the highlight of this campaign.

To my volunteers, an outstanding team of hard workers, you offered and gave of your time, talent and treasure to support this campaign. I want to publicly thank you. You are my heroes and I continue to be inspired by your passion and commitment to better government through conservative principles.

Onward and Upward, Lincoln and Waltham for today is a bright new day. This is not the end, it is just the beginning of my public service in the capacity of a candidate. “If your dreams don’t scare you, they’re not big enough.”

Sincerely,

Stacey Gallagher Tully
85 Lincoln Road, Waltham

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.

To the editor:

On Saturday, the town will have an opportunity to come together and hear what is on the minds of town boards and committees, in addition to asking questions and sharing ideas. That is one important conversation.  There is another.

This past summer, an important community conversation was resumed. Every so many years, a new generation of Lincoln looks at itself and asks important questions about our decision making process: Town Meeting. Some clearly feel the format is not conducive to inclusion. Others believe it brings out the best of community participation and decision-making. And, as many have said, democracy is not a spectator sport and requires full participation.

But how do we best achieve that when we have a form of governance crafted in the 18th century that is still serving us in the 21st? Are there ways we can improve access to information, debate and decision-making to expand participation? The Town Moderator, an elected position established in the 18th century, stepped to the plate and took these and other questions to the Board of Selectmen on October 24. The conversation’s focus was to explore how we might improve Town Meeting and decision-making. After some discussion, the Selectmen agreed that having a town-wide conversation about fine-tuning Town Meeting was important and urged the moderator to consider how best to move forward.

Other models for Town Meeting exist so that we need not reinvent the wheel. We have neighbors who debate this issue on a regular basis. Years ago, HATS (Hanscom Area Towns—Lincoln, Lexington, Concord and Bedford) hosted just such a discussion. In attendance were other Town Moderators, representatives of the League of Women Voters, Town Meeting members and others. Many towns have created a guide to Town Meeting for their own communities. Our own Town Clerk has created such a guide: “Welcome to Lincoln! A Guide for New Residents.”  This is being distributed to newcomers and will soon made available online.

But what more can we do? How can we include new ideas, technologies and innovations? What became clear in the meeting between the Selectmen and Town Moderator is a need for the setting of context to open any discussion:

• What exactly is Town Meeting?
• Where did it come from and why?
• What are the state statutes that establish it, and that also dictate how decisions are made?
• What can and what can’t we do to alter voting and decision-making?
• And, if we want to make fundamental changes to how we govern ourselves, what would it take to do so?

Once we have established the basic information and “road rules,” we can then begin a discussion of how we might make changes. While no date was set for the Town Moderator to return to the Selectmen to report next steps, it is clear that there is a need, and an important conversation has begun.

Many of us wonder how we, as a clearly divided country, can come together to govern at a national level. But we should not doubt that we can and will come together as a community. It is important to find time to listen and share thoughts this Saturday morning at our annual State of the Town meeting, and also to participate when and where we might find an opportunity to discuss how best to fine-tune Town Meeting, and celebrate the civility that has dominated our ongoing community conversations.

Sincerely,

Sara Mattes
71 Conant Rd.

Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.