Salem Community Patriot April 15, 2011 - 3


The Word Around Town... Letters to our Editor


Next Time, We Need to Approve the School Articles


As a parent of two elementary school students, I feel compelled to write my thoughts about the recent defeat of most of the school articles on the March ballot. During the past five years, my children’s lives (and mine) have been touched by many dedicated teachers at Fisk elementary, as well as the nurses, assistants, secretaries, and custodians. It hurts that we as a community did not support them this year for a job well done these past several years. I have always admired those who teach because it takes such dedication to be effective in that role. Over the past few years, I have realized that teaching is probably the easiest part of their job. The true challenge and dedication is in dealing with children with different family backgrounds, personalities, skill sets, and emotional issues. These teachers and staff do a phenomenal job of bringing all these variables together to meet the needs of different students and create an exceptional learning experience. I am fortunate in that I have been involved


in various school activities, served as room mom, and participated in many PTA activities. In these capacities, I have seen teachers reach into their own pockets time and time again to provide additional learning tools or other appropriate items to enhance the students’ school experience—not because they have to, but because they are passionate about what they do, and the funding is often not available by any other means. We are fortunate to have these teachers here in our Salem School District. In order for our town to retain quality teachers


and school staff, we need to let them know they are valued. It is one thing to celebrate Staff Appreciation Week year after year, but salary increases also need to get passed. It’s our responsibility to our teachers and all that work in our public education system in Salem. These employees are not in the private sector working for corporations who may give them bonuses


based on incentives, an increase in annual earnings, or as an end-of-year thank you for a job well done. They need us to be their voice. Next time, let’s get out and vote, and show our support for our teachers, children, and community.


Melissa Sorcinelli - Salem


Salem Fire Department Thank-You


Recently, my wife had a heart problem. I called


911. The dispatcher was very helpful. When the Salem ambulance and rescue crews arrived, they treated her quickly. I just want to say a heartfelt, big thank-you for your great help. I felt she was in great hands when the EMTs worked on her. Once again, a big thank-you to the hard-


working firefighters and EMTs of the Salem Fire Department.


Michael Flathers - Salem


Televising Budget Committee Meetings


Last March, you, the people of Salem, placed


your trust in me by electing me to the Salem Budget Committee. I am extremely grateful for that opportunity to serve you! Last Thursday night, I was in attendance for Stephen Campbell’s replacement interview session with three great candidates. This meeting was supposed to be completely televised on SGC 23, but shortly before the interviews concluded, chairman Russell Frydryck encouraged the board to close the deliberations to the public on television. This is wrong. You, the people of Salem, have a right to be fully informed about who will represent you on the Budget Committee. I would like the public to know not only was I upset about this, but I felt like I was betraying you, the voters, and I am sorry for that! This seat belongs to you, the people of Salem, and this Budget Committee should not


Legislative Bob Elliott


Jane Lang has raised a very provocative thought in last week’s


Patriot, “Are these the Representatives you voted for?” My question would be, “why did you vote for these 13 Representatives?” and my answer is totally different from Jane’s. First, we must consider what happened in the last four years in New Hampshire. In my freshman year, the budget went from a $9.5 billion budget to our first $10 billion budget ever. The General Fund increased 17 percent – unheard of – and we passed (over the next four years) a total of 100 new taxes. By the time I started my third term after the elections, we were facing a $700 million deficit. That was part of the problem in the November elections, but it is my opinion that Senator Obama was the other part. Many Americans were not only confused about socialized medicine because it is so complicated, but many elderly voters were just plain scared of the future.


As for the first part, the comments I heard the most were: “That’s it, I’m fed up. I can’t afford any more taxes, I just lost my job, … the government doesn’t listen to us. The economy is bad. The State is borrowing too much money to pay its bills, and the Constitution is ignored by Washington and Concord.” The public said, “All the candidates say the same thing, ‘we will change New Hampshire. We will balance the budget. We the Legislature, will define an Adequate Education, not the State Supreme Court or Claremont. We will bring more jobs by giving the Small Businessman tax breaks, and not have a sales tax, which hurts business in NH.’” “If you pledge to do this, we will vote for you,” they said ... and we did that … and they voted for us in overwhelming numbers all over the state. They elected 153 brand new ultra-conservative Republicans, and another 145 of the plain old-fashioned conservatives, for a super- majority of Republican Representatives and only 100 Democrat Representatives. Unbelievable as it was, they made sure the Senate would not override us and elected 19 conservative Republicans and only five Democrats to the Senate. Just to make sure we all got the message, they elected all five Republicans on the Governor’s Council of Executives, removing the three previous Democrats— unheard of. Amazing … a stunning defeat, and obviously, a strong threat was


given by the voters .... Do it this way or else! We thought we had three choices:


1. Put in more revenue (gambling); it was defeated in the House, but not the Senate.


hide anything from you. And just for the record, nothing against Everett McBride, but I was the only vote in opposition to his appointment. I simply wanted to continue to have new membership on the board; I do believe I can work well with Mr. McBride on doing our part in lowering your taxes here in Salem.


Patrick McDougall, Municipal Budget


Committee Member - Salem


Winter Carnival Thank-You


The Woodbury PTSA wishes to thank all the countless dedicated parent, student, and staff volunteers who made our recent annual Winter Carnival a highly successful and fun family evening. Our chair, Missy Ribaudo, led a fantastic effort this year and we applaud and thank her for taking on this enormous task. We thank our sponsors,


whose donations and participation helped make this a very successful event: Best Buy of Salem; EKeys4Cars, Salem Centre for Orthodontix, Salem Co-op Bank, Salem Kiwanis Club, Enterprise Bank, Pentucket Bank, PlayBall, Stachey’s Pizza, BJ’s Store, Salem, and Robert Barnett, DMD. We also deeply appreciate the many donations from local businesses, individuals, students, and parents for our prize drawing tables, and vendors who provided additional crafts and activities for students.


Our thanks to the Woodbury


Jazz Band for providing some of the evening’s entertainment and to the Builder’s Club for running the cookie decorating table. Finally, a warm thanks to Woodbury School administrators, teaching, and support staff for their assistance in supporting this annual event over the last several months. We are grateful for your partnership and all that you do for our students and families.


Patti Frydryck, President, Woodbury School PTSA - Salem


FREE Update Why We Voted In Our Representatives


2. New taxes (“Don‘t even think about that”), or 3. Cut the budget. When I conducted my personal computer survey two years ago,


the overwhelming answer from my constituents was: “If gambling doesn’t pass ... [it didn’t] … then make the cuts.” So we did. Nobody took us seriously. We started with an $11 billion budget. About 1,000 pages and


six inches thick. About $6 billion is federal money. The General Fund and Educational Funds (state revenue) was about $5 billion total. This budget is so huge, it took us three months to get it ready for the full House of Representatives. We split the budget into three sections: Division I, Division II, and Division III. Chairman Neil Kurk had Division III, which includes Health and Human Services. Thirty-eight percent of the budget is Welfare, as we used to call it. That’s the part that causes all the pain, children, the handicapped, the elderly and nursing homes, the blind, the deaf, the delinquent, and the addicts. They left $3.5 billion in the budget for Health and Human Services, while cutting $300 million after the Governor cut $600 million from Health and Human Services. The budget is not finished. March 31, “Crossover Day,” means


every bill the House voted for “crosses over” to the Senate, and vice versa. For those of you worried about Health and Human Services, it


would not surprise me if the Senate put back in at least $200 million. They will definitely repeal the Kurk amendment, which will make the teachers, police, and firemen very happy, I’m sure. The key issue separating both parties is the State Revenue Estimate.


We were advised to count on a budget and revenues of $4.4 billion. The Governor is counting on $4.7 billion. We’re only apart $300 million (not counting the $700 million deficit). If jobs grow, if revenue increases … if the economy improves, and remember, April and May are the State’s best months for income because that’s when business taxes are paid. Then, the Senate can put money back into the budget instead of putting it into a “rainy day” fund. Jane, let us both hope the revenues improve. Even though we disagree on political philosophy, we both want to do what is best for our “most vulnerable citizens.“ Don’t you, Laurel, and Kathleen agree?


Bob Elliott is an elected representative for Salem and Windham, and he is Vice Chairman of the Division 11 Finance Committee.


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Doggie Daycare & Training Center


1st Day of Doggie Daycare


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for new clients only


Not only will we be looking for you, but the Easter Bunny will be too!


Pet Adoption Day Sandy


First Congregational Church in Pelham Join Us April 16th at our


11:00 to 2:00 www.arnne.org. Charlie Bass


To see a complete listing of our dogs and cats visit


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Have your photo taken with the Easter Bunny by "Creations by Sea-Jay" for $10!


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Part of the proceeds to benefit the Animal Rescue Network of New England. Ad sponsored by Beaver Valley Farms, Pelham, NH


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