Deerfield friends and neighbors: If you want a fiscally responsible selectperson, you already have her: Carolyn Shores Ness. She has an estimable track record of working closely with legislative officials, securing funding (that important “f” word), and being present and active in town committees. Her opponent, Blake Gilmore, has never served on any volunteer committee, such as the Finance Committee, or run for a seat on any board, such as the Planning Board, Board of Assessors, Library Trustees, or either of the two School Committees. My family and I, like many in town, are questioning the experience of a candidate who has not built up years of knowledge of town government like our present Selectboard chairperson.

The Gilmore campaign seems to be about Shores Ness being committed to raising taxes at the expense of the people who live in Deerfield. No one wants higher taxes. But simply stating you won’t raise taxes doesn’t cut it. Mr. Gilmore is unwilling or unable to answer the question many of us have been asking: What would he do differently? What programs would he cut? We don't know because he won't — or can't — say. Carolyn Shores Ness has used her substantial experience, judgment, and acumen to secure millions of dollars for Deerfield: for our farms, roads, bridges (Stillwater Bridge!), health clinics, seniors, and schoolchildren — investments in a foundation for the future.We can’t afford to let our town fall into disrepair. I want our children to inherit a Deerfield that we decided was worth investing in, not one we left to erode back into the past. We need the experience of people like Carolyn Shores Ness, or I fear we’ll be both financially, and literally, underwater.

Emily Gaylord

Deerfield