As a Camden resident and parent of two, I write in enthusiastic support of Patrick McCafferty and his candidacy for the School Administrative District 28 and Five Town CSD school boards.

Having known Patrick since we were both high school students at the building which is now the middle school, I know him to be fair, balanced, and exceptionally resourceful.

Patrick has lived in Camden his entire life, has three wonderful kids in the school system, and owns a local masonry business, all of which provide excellent background and experience for the job. But perhaps more important than any of these things alone is that Patrick is easy to get along with, open-minded, analytical, and extraordinarily good at dealing with conflict and differing opinions.

I do not always agree with Patrick but I always feel that he is listening and looking for solutions. He often finds these solutions where others do not and I believe his creativity and vision will be well suited for the task of helping set educational policies and managing millions of dollars in a way that is effective for our students and fair to the taxpayers.

I think Patrick shares my feeling that teachers are the most important component of any school system. Both of us are products of the local school system, and both of us attended classes in a variety of buildings of varying caliber, but what we both remember more than that are the excellent teachers who shaped our experience. 

Alison McKellar lives in Camden and is a Select Board member of that town.