Please support these Charlestown Democrats
By Catherine O’Reilly Collette, Chair of the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee
On behalf of the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee, I am proud to endorse and support the three fine Democrats on the November 3 ballot for Charlestown Town Council: Deb Carney, Jodi Frank and Scott Keeley.
Each of these individuals bring experience and talent that will serve the people of Charlestown well.
I
have known Deb Carney for nearly 20 years, watched her chair the Council when
we first moved to Charlestown, then admired her outstanding work on the Chariho
School Committee. I consider her to be one of the most talented and
hard-working public servants I have ever met. She currently serves as Council
Vice-President and seeks re-election.
Jodi
Frank served the town for six years as a member of the Parks and Recreation
Commission, putting her Ph.D. in Kinesiology to good use by working on
improvements in Ninigret Park and Charlestown’s public lands. She is currently
finishing up her B.S. in Nursing and will be an RN early in 2021.
I
met Scott Keeley 15 years ago and have always loved his humor and breadth of
knowledge. I admire the way he has taken on the issue of the people’s right to
use the beach despite efforts by non-resident beachfront property owners to
deny access.
For
the past decade, Charlestown has been controlled by a single party: the
Charlestown Citizens Alliance that was spawned by the Rhode Island Shoreline
Coalition with its focus on the interests of absentee land-owners. They have
raised our taxes just about every year since they’ve been in control, engaged
in shady land deals, driven out small businesses and purged town commissions of
anyone not a CCA loyalist.
Each
election year, absentee property owners flood the CCA treasury with cash to try
to sell Charlestown voters the same overblown story that we are under threat of
unspeakable horrors to our rural way of life and only the CCA can keep us safe.
You’ll see that message in the CCA flyers that will be filling your mailboxes.
It’s
time to stop being driven by fear. We need to focus on positive ways to move
forward: fair taxes, sensible land use, choosing qualified people for town
boards and commissions and using town resources to help our community cope with
the problems caused by the pandemic and a badly damaged economy.
I know Deb Carney, Jodi Frank and Scott Keeley are the best qualified people on the ballot to get the job done. I urge you to vote for them when you cast your ballot – by mail or in person - in this year’s election.
