Citizen News, Letter to Editor, October 21, 2015.

To the Editor:

At the July 2014 town meeting, Selectman Cope
asked the people of Sherman to vote on whether the
town should purchase an $18,798 Toro Sand Pro
tractor for the purpose of grooming the town’s
athletic fields. He stood and watched as those of us
in attendance discussed the pros and cons of whether
the town needed the machinery. When the vote was
taken that evening, it became clear that the people of
Sherman did not see a need for this piece of
equipment. The catch? The entire exercise was a
charade on the part of Selectman Cope. He had
unilaterally made the decision to buy that equipment
nine weeks before. The Sand Pro had been
purchased (without requesting competitive bids as
required), was already being used by the Public
Works department and was being kept hidden in a
town garage. None of that was mentioned by Mr.
Cope to the attendees of that town meeting.
In light of the vote, a “mea culpa” letter appeared
in this newspaper, in which Mr. Cope claimed that
he had misunderstood the rules of the budget and
had mistakenly bought the Sand Pro. He hastily
arranged a return of the now-used machinery. At
the subsequent board of selectmen meeting on
August 28th, the obvious question was posed: Why
did you not explain your mistake at the town
meeting in July and let the town vote on whether to
keep the already-purchased Sand Pro? Mr. Cope’s
response was that he felt that by revealing that the
town already, in fact, owned the Sand Pro, he would
somehow sway the ensuing vote. Strange behavior
for an elected official who touts his honesty and
transparency.

But let’s accept it for a moment. Once
the vote was decided, however, and there was no
chance of anyone being swayed, what was the
reason for not revealing this “mistake” to the dozens
of townspeople in attendance that night?
In light of his actions, the inescapable answer is
that Mr. Cope hoped to avoid taking responsibility
for his egregious error. And if we had voted “yes” to
purchase the equipment that evening, the people of
this town would never have heard about this breach
of our trust. Is that acceptable behavior from our
First Selectman? Mr. Cope has an absolute
responsibility to share all of the facts with the
citizens of this town – including the ones that are
inconvenient and embarrassing to him.

As Sherman voters head to the polls on November
3rd, the “Sand Pro scandal” must be considered.
Accidentally purchasing an $18,000-plus piece of
equipment with taxpayer dollars is quite a mistake.
Not understanding how the budget works after
several years on the job is a failure that should give
the town pause. But actively concealing information
from the people who elected him as their first
selectman is unforgivable.

Ben Bilbrough,
Sherman

Citizen News, Letter to Editor, October 7, 2015.

To the Editor:

I recall the first time I met Don Lowe. It was on a
veterinary house call to vaccinate his new, beloved
beagle puppy. As I waited in the living room of his
charming farmhouse, a framed vintage photo of a
bison herd on his wall caught my eye. This
conversation piece proved to be the beginnings of a
long and continuing friendship. I learned that Don
was the son of a North Dakota dairyman-tumed-
cropduster. His backyard and playground was a
landing strip and wheat farm in prairie pothole
country. There, as in Sherman, it is the countryside
and natural beauty that dominates and shapes the
man. Don earned a degree in journalism at North
Dakota State and then migrated east to New York
City to pursue an interest in the entertainment
industry. As a result Don, much like Sherman. is a
mixture of the best qualities of the country boy and
city man.

Although we still own a house in Sherman. it’s
been over a decade that it’s been our home. Yet I
often think of Don as local crop clusters, who still
ply the skies of rural Idaho, dust the surrounding
comfields for spider mites and spray the spring
wheat for rust. The pilots demonstrate admirable
grace and skill as they make precipitous dives and
then skim the crops to drop a precise load on their
target. I know that Don, at the helm of Sherman’s
selectmen, would exercise similar good judgment and
talent and will practice careful stewardship in town
affairs.

His unique blend of urban sophistication and rural
common sense, caring nature and strong work ethic
make him a fine fit for town government. I strongly
recommend that you vote for Don Lowe for First
Selectman.

Paul Biagiotti, DVM
Jerome, Idaho

Citizen News, Letter to Editor, October 7, 2015.

To the Editor:

As part of the O’Connor/Lowe administration
(2004-2008), I take exception to the misleading
statements in First Selectman Cope’s recent column.
While he claims to be “Right for Sherman.“ he
certainly is not right on the facts.

Spending on projects was high under our
administration, through a combination of adequate
budgeting to build the capital expenditures fund and
substantial grants that enabled the town to move forward
on neglected infrastructure repairs and upgrades—not
through depleted reserves as Cope claims.

Borrowing was proposed—and approved by a
substantial majority of voters—for much needed
projects that could not be paid for through annual
budget allocations to the capital expenditures fund.
Borrowing is particularly well suited to projects that
are anticipated to have a long-life, spreading the cost
over both the current and future taxpayers who will
benefit from the investments. The projects supported
by the borrowing that the First Selectman seems to
disdain included the expanded library, which Cope
constantly references as his grand achievement in
project management, but one where delays in
planning forced the town to re-enter the bond market
for a small issue at greater cost to taxpayers in
higher interest payments.

Reserves were depleted when our administration
followed the long-standing practice of applying a
portion of reserves to lower the mill rate. Once this
practice was discontinued and a reserve policy was
developed—again, by our administration—reserves
were quickly restored to the point where funds could
be transferred from reserves to the capital
expenditures fund, just as Cope has proposed for the
upcoming Town Meeting.

It is true that Moody’s issued a negative outlook
to the town, but that occurred in 2013—on,Cope’s
watch. The town’s bond rating was never lowered
under my administration—and it hasn’t increased
under Cope’s. The town’s credit rating was Aa2, the
highest level that can be achieved by a town of our
size, when we entered the bond market in 2010 and
continues to stand at Aa2 today.

Cope boasts of a surplus of over $460,000 in the
2014-2015 budget, rightfully crediting the Board of Education for its major contribution to this amount.  Has he forgotten that half of those funds have already been committed to the School boiler project?

Finally, Cope attempts to camouflage his
mismanagement of both the closeout of the ESF
construction and the transfer of Happy Acres to
town management by casting blame on my
administration, when his own ineptitude and
inexperience coupled with an unwillingness to heed
the advice of those more familiar with these issues
worked to the disadvantage of taxpayers.

“Right for Sherman?” Hardly.

Andrea O’Connor,
Sherman, Selectman

Citizen News, Letter to Editor, October 7, 2015.

To the Editor:

This town and all of its residents would be very well served by the energy, the sound judgement, the straightforwardness, and the habits of ethical conduct that Don Lowe would bring to the office of the First Selectman in Sherman.

Neal Goodwin, Sherman

Citizen News, Letter to Editor, October 7, 2015.

To the Editor:

I know Don Lowe to be a fair-minded individual who is well-versed in the concerns and needs of Sherman, who I believe will seek and find consensus in order to serve all of our residents

Joy Goodwin, Sherman

Citizen News, Letter to Editor, September 30, 2015

To the Editor:

I first met Don Lowe in the way I would come to
know him: at a crowded town event, chatting among a
group of parents. Throughout the years the backdrop
shifted: the Sherman School, the Historical Society, a
town hall meeting, or the Sherman Library-among
others. The one constant was Don, warmly engaged in
the midst of conversation with community members,
whether it be about education, land preservation,
zoning regulations- or the new album he was currently
hammering out. Don Lowe has always struck me as a
man who cares deeply about our town: its citizens and
its history just as much as its attributes and its issues.

Since moving to Sherman sixteen years ago, Don
has immersed himself in our town’s life, perhaps
most notably in education. For many years my
father, Barry Roberts, taught in the Sherman School.
His memories of Sherman families are long, but
Don Lowe was one of those parents who stood out
to him, too. He enjoyed teaching Don’s son, David,
as much as he enjoyed his spirited discussions with
Don-just as I had the privilege of taking a writing
class Don led at the Sherman School, in which the
draft of my first novel came to fruition. And where I
have since had the joy to get to know the rest of
Don’s family: his lovely wife, Mary Ann Lamb, son
Connor, and daughter Rosemund, with whom my
own children now attend school. Don’s work as a
Board member for Sherman Higher Education Fund
is longstanding. In his professional life the thread
remains; a published author, Don is an adjunct
professor at Naugatuck Valley, as well as a tutor for
at-risk students with REACH in Newtown.

It would be hard to throw a rock in town without
hitting a Board or committee that Don Lowe has
served on: the Planning and Zoning commission,
Chairman of the Land Acquisition Board, SHEF, the
Sherman Chamber Ensemble, accompanied by
unswerving volunteerism at the Senior Center,
School, and Library. From 2004 to 2008, Don
served as an elected Sherman Selectman garnering
the valuable experience of town administration
beyond the many years of service he’d already put
in, and continues to put in today. Don’s approach,
no matter the Board on which he serves, is
diplomatic. He is a listener. An eloquent speaker. A
problem solver. Having grown up in a rural North
Dakota town himself, Don doesn’t just understand
small town life- he embraces it.

The depth and diversity of his public service
record speaks for itself. But it is the person that Don
Lowe is that still draws people across the town green, or a stretch of beach, or the school parking lot  to shake his hand. His altruistic efforts embody who he is in our town of Sherman: parent, husband,
educator, board member, former selectman,
volunteer, writer, and musician. I have always felt
honored to call Don Lowe a friend. Our town would
be honored to call him First Selectman.

Hannah Roberts McKinnon, Sherman