Trust and Respect

[Tim OBrien]

Changing times are often stressful for any community.  Our township is going through a difficult period in its history.  During this period of uncertainty it is important to keep a clear head and not allow our fears and other powerful emotions to cloud our judgment.  Two elements that allow for our community to function smoothly are Trust and Respect.  Trust in each other's basic decency and respect for our legitimate differences give us the ability to work together for the common good. 

Recently, there have been rumors circulating that Dr Golden had received a significant sum of money this year for sick days.  This rumor is not true.  Employee compensation issues are complex and not something I can discuss here.  However, I wanted to dispel this rumor and encourage everyone to let us move forward into a new school year with the expectation that we will all be working for the goal of the best possible education of our children. 

Boards change over time and many of us on the Board are there for less than three years.  Others have been there for many years.  Lively and passionate discussion is a healthy thing when we adhere to the two key principles mentioned above.  Dr. Golden and I may not always agree on every issue, but that has nothing to do with my trust in her integrity or my respect for her views and beliefs on education and running a school district.  The same applies to my fellow board members, other members of administration and every professional employed by our school district.   

Like many of you, I am a long time member of our community with a deep fondness for this wonderful town.  It is a great place to raise children and I am committed to doing what I can to help address the challenges we face in these uncertain times.  We can only hope to succeed if we come together with trust and respect for each other to work for the benefit of our children and our community.

Respectfully,
Tim O'Brien

[Pat Garaffa]

Tim,

Well said!  And thank you for clarifying my/our concern. 

Just to underscore my own intentions - I was only seeking answers and was not attempting to magnify or spread a rumor.  And since three board members regularly post then what better place to ask questions and get answers? 

I could easily have passed this along instead of asking.  Or worse, pass it along and add another 20K to the amount.  It probably started as speculation and then grew to 240K using that exact method.   Instead, I asked the question exactly as it was presented to me and I continued to ask until it was answered.   (I didn’t even add any additional money to make it sound better. LOL!) 

And now 2 of the 3 BOE members said it was false and I accept that as the truth.  I am glad it has been laid to rest and hopefully it will stay there.

Thanks again for all your contributions.   

[Jeanette_Smith]

Ditto what Tim said. Now you have 3 of 3 Pat.

[Al_Miller]

I also have a lot of Respect and Trust for all 3 of you (Gene, Jeanette & Tim). I know at the end of the day you all are looking out for what is best for the children and taxpayers of this town. I would like to thank all of you for the great job you are doing. I know the next couple of months are going to be very difficult drawing up a budget that hopefully gets supported by the community. I wish you all good luck in this difficult task.