Bonnie Van Slyke: Facts Matter
Bonnie Van Slyke is a member of the Charlestown Town Council and a candidate for Town Council in the 2018 election. A version of this letter was submitted to the local newspapers in response to criticism from the opposition candidates for Town Council.
There has been much discussion, and behind-the-scenes innuendo, surrounding the appointment of George Tremblay to the position that was left vacant by the sudden resignation of Councilor Steve Williams the night before the Town Council meeting in January 2018. Council President Virginia Lee announced Mr. Williams’s resignation at the start of the meeting.
A Town Council needs a full roster of active members. This was especially true in February of 2018 because of the many threats the town faced. I nominated George Tremblay to fill the vacant seat because he was clearly the most qualified, because he had extensive experience and, most important, because he was able to serve.
At the meeting in February, I spoke, at length, about George’s qualifications. George had served on the Planning Commission from 2010 to 2012 and on the Town Council from 2012 to 2016. In every election he entered (there were three), George was the voters’ choice. In the race for Planning Commission in 2010, he was the highest vote getter. In the race for Town Council in 2014, he garnered the second highest total and was Vice President of the Council.
George had worked tirelessly for the citizens of Charlestown. I spoke of one incident that exemplified George’s approach. In the spring floods in 2010, even though George’s property was not flooded, he helped his neighbors along Rt. 2 near the Town Hall organize and deal with the water that had flooded their properties. He then worked on developing a long-term flood management and mitigation plan and in the process involved the Governor, the RI Department of Transportation, FEMA and local officials in his efforts.
It is easy to criticize and cast aspersions. However, it is the facts that matter—every single one of them—and I urge you to examine the facts.
Our opponents lobbied that we should appoint someone who was so gravely ill that he could not attend the February Town Council meeting, one who never could have served on the Town Council and sadly passed away in June. George was not just an excellent choice; George was the only viable choice.
Then, I urge you to vote for CCA-endorsed candidates who share your values, who listen to opinions yet discover the facts and who act on those facts in the best interests of all the residents of the town. Vote for truly independent individuals based on their solid record of achievement and because they will deliver what they promise.
You can learn more about Bonnie at her profile page.
November 2, 2018 @ 2:34 pm
It saddens me that some people, especially many politicians, look at an issue, pick out the facts that support only their position, pick the ones from that list that they believe are most sensational and then expand on these one or two inordinately to give the impression that what they say represents the total issue when in fact it is a distorted view of a fraction of the issue. What a sick society we live in. The ideals of democracy are wise and noble but much of the current practice is disgusting.
November 2, 2018 @ 11:49 am
I think you miss the point, I don’t disagree that Mr. Trembley was a very good candidate and has served the town well. The point is that the council appeared to have reached a conclusion before the meeting started, and appearances matter when you’ve run on a platform of open and transparent governance.
November 2, 2018 @ 1:28 pm
After the resignation was publicly announced in the beginning of January, there were only two candidates. George had made his desire to serve well known since his own term on the Council had ended in November 2016. He was looking for work he could do to continue to serve the town. I had suggested his name to two Town Councilors after Steve Williams resigned. Others may have done the same. The other candidate had phoned Town Councilors, put out many public posts on Facebook, written a letter to the editor, talked to me and another member of the Planning Commission and probably others. Both candidates were well known to the Town Council personally and also their credentials and limitations. The council meeting happened in the context of a public discussion that had been going on for a month.
There were several speakers from South Kingstown and several from Charlestown, but no new information or new candidates were introduced.
Its important that Town Councilors not have discussions among themselves before a meeting, but it’s not unusual for each member to have weighed the information before a meeting and to have an opinion. Heavily edited videos will try to tell another story.