Our Choices - And Why...

After much consideration the following candidates receive COAF's endorsement:

County  Executive:

John Callahan

County Council:

Ron Heckman - D

Gerry Seyfried - D

Deb Hunter - D

Peg Ferraro - R

Seth Vaughn - R

Our deliberations over these candidates were extensive. The number one item of concern for us of course was Gracedale. However, we did consider each candidate on the basis of their character and integrity.

We feel consistency in these matters is vital. And while we did not support John Callahan in the primary, we explained during a meeting with him that Lamont McClure deserved our loyalty because he was instrumental in the effort to save Gracedale. Had Mr. McClure not thrown his hat into the ring, perhaps we would have supported Callahan early on. That's the past however, this is now. We collectively decided on Mayor Callahan over Mayor Brown because during our meeting with Mr. Brown, while he seemed competent and qualified, he also seemed reluctant to sign a pledge that he would not consider selling Gracedale. As the entire county is aware, Gracedale is our mission. We harbor no ill feelings for Mr. Brown. We respect his position, however, we require the assurance that Gracedale will not be set up for failure again! We received that assurance from John Callahan.

Our county Council choices were somewhat more involved. However, because we are engaged and informed it was not difficult. We first looked at the ten candidates to identify who actually supported Gracedale during the battle to keep her in our hands. Of the five selected, only one did not - Seth Vaughn. So why would we endorse him? Simple, he met with us prior to the primary seeking our support. This young hopeful said something that we have rarely heard from any sitting servant. He said "I'm sorry I did not support Gracedale during my first run for Council." And then he said something even more meaningful. "I didn't know enough about Gracedale." To us, this young man demonstrated humility on a level not often seen in our local government. He realized he made a mistake, he owned it, and he pledged to work as hard as necessary to keep Gracedale right where she is because now he understands how important Gracedale is to the county residents she serves. And, how equally important Gracedale is to the taxpayers who foot the bill, as well as the electors who hire and fire our public officials through the power of their vote.

On the Democratic side, we extend best wishes to Christen Borso and Tom O'Donnell. They both pledged to do right by Gracedale too. Unfortunately there are only five seats available. If you don't make it this time around, don't hang your heads - persevere.

On the Republican side, we can't say much about Hayden Phillips, Glenn Geissinger, or Mathew Benol because none of them considered us worthy of a meeting. Geissinger did schedule a meeting with us, however, he did not attend. We will certainly wish them all well, but that's it! If we're not worthy of thier consideration now, logic tells us we won't be later. And if we're not worthy of their time now, they're not worthy of our support or vote.

GET OUT AND VOTE!