To the Editor:

It takes a special kind of person to volunteer and serve on a town board or commission. Republicans feel we have a responsibility to attract new people to serve, grow, debate issues, and lead. The Newtown Republican Town Committee (RTC) has hosted a number of events in order to find new candidates with the intention of allowing them to meet their sitting and experienced elected officials, understand the level of commitment required to serve, and give them the opportunity to decide if they would like to be involved to serve Newtown in any capacity. The RTC is grateful to all our members for their continuous support.

Did you know that since 2013 the RTC has held several large events that included 32 new, interested parties? Some of these folks now serve on various boards and commissions.

Did you know that 62 people were interviewed for both the upcoming election and for the various openings on appointed boards and commissions that became available in that time frame?

Background, experience, ability to serve, and a willingness to support and be a part of the public process are all considerations when we try to place a candidate in an open seat on a board or commission. The Newtown RTC also embraces unaffiliated and independent voters in our candidate selection process. Of the 62 people interviewed in the last two years, 14 have been unaffiliated voters who were interested in serving but wanted to maintain their party independence. That’s OK; we do not require qualified candidates to change parties.

Did you know that seven of the 14 unaffiliated candidates are now serving Newtown as board or committee members as recommended by the Newtown RTC?

Did you know that this outreach and interview process has given the Newtown RTC the opportunity to recommend 42 new candidates for 12 different boards and commissions? Seven new faces are on our 2015 slate for the November elections.

Republicans have worked hard to ensure our candidates have the right qualifications to lead. We are not willing to leave a seat uncontested or to just insert a placeholder. Our candidates have the right background for each position. Their concern is for the big picture and not just a single issue. They are well informed about both current and future issues. Please take some time to read the bios of each and every candidate before you cast your vote. We are proud of our slate and hope you will visit our website to learn more about our candidates: newtownrepublicans.org/election-2015.

Interested? Please attend one of our meetings at the Senior Center on the fourth Wednesday of the month at 7:30 pm.

Sincerely,

John Godin

Chairman, Candidate’s Committee

Newtown RTC

4 Quarry Ridge Road, Sandy Hook                                  October 2, 2015