January 31, 2007
Successful Village of Dryden Democratic caucus
The Dryden Democrats started the race for village offices with a bang: great turnout at a caucus that unanimously nominated two strong candidates for Village Trustee: Lisa Valentinelli and Elizabeth Gutchess.
Lisa Valentinelli is the principal of the MacCormick Secure Center in Caroline. She grew up in Dryden, and as she puts it, "she's always come back to Dryden." She'll be starting work on her doctorate in the fall. She wants to see open government, and wants to see better communications within the village. Neighbors should know what's going on, and know each other. She's looking forward to asking questions.
Lisa Valentinelli (standing) introduces herself to the Dryden Democrats.
Elizabeth Gutchess has taught English at TC3 for the past 16 years and lives on East Main Street. She recently published the first volume of her history of the Village's second century. She volunteers at the Dryden Presbyterian Church's Food Pantry. She's the advisor to the TC3 drama club, where she's been trying to connect TC3 with local residents more directly. She'd like to develop stronger connections between TC3 and the Village.
Elizabeth Gutchess introduces herself to the Dryden Democrats.
(Sorry, the photos aren't great, but hopefully they give you a sense of things!)
Mayor Reba Taylor reports on WHCU that Republican incumbents Bob Witty (CFCU president) and Randy Sterling (a City of Ithaca police officer) will be running for trustee, and she will be running for Mayor.
Posted by simon at January 31, 2007 8:46 AM in politics (local)Note on photos
Kudos to Simon and Mike Lane for fostering such a sense of community abong the people at the caucus. Leaders like Simon and Mike really inspire other people to consider public service.