Deerfield residents, on May 6, when voting for Selectboard, look no further than Carolyn Shores Ness. She works 50 to 60 hours a week for Deerfield. No one else on the ballot will do that. Health issues? From mosquitoes to thousands of dollars in grants for our public health nurse programs, Carolyn has saved lives in Deerfield. Roads and culverts? Repairs are happening with state and federal money that Carolyn helped secure: $1.58 million from the state to pay for emergency repairs to roads destroyed by torrential rains last July. Farming? Carolyn has brought state and federal representatives and senators right out to Deerfield to see firsthand the devastation from flooding, and money for repairs quickly followed those visits. The environment? Carolyn is no newcomer to this issue. She started the Deerfield Land Trust in 1989, and they protected 3,500 acres of prime farmland before merging with the Franklin Land Trust.Want to draw more business and visitors to our downtown? Her vision for the Leary Lot — paid for almost entirely by federal and state grants, with no cost to residents, will add new parking and make our downtown more attractive.

It’s easy to see that Carolyn Shores Ness has a fiscally responsible vision that all town officials should emulate. Deerfield cannot afford to elect an unqualified candidate to the Selectboard. Her opponent has had little experience in town government: no committees served, no sustained volunteerism, no detailed understanding of the many, many challenges facing our town, and no legislative relationships. A vote for Carolyn Shores Ness is a vote for our families, our neighbors and Deerfield’s future.

Analee Wulfkuhle

South Deerfield