I am writing in support of Amy Sheldon as one of Middlebury’s representatives in the Vermont House. I have known Amy for nearly fourteen years and have always been impressed by her dedication and commitment to our community. From her early efforts as the executive director of the Middlebury Area Land Trust (MALT), founding the Trail Around Middlebury (TAM), to over a decade of service on our Planning Commission, Amy has helped shape our community in a way that makes it more accessible and sustainable for all. For the last two years Amy has served as one of our representatives and contributed widely to a variety of important issues that impact Vermonters on a daily basis.
From climate change to health care to economic stability, I know Amy understands the urgency in addressing these issues and the complexity of their interrelationships from the local to the global level. Amy is a great listener who genuinely wants to know how Middlebury residents have been affected by these matters and how she can advocate for us in Montpelier. Amy is also a small business owner, and I believe she represents many of us who strive to keep Vermont an economically viable place to grow our businesses and raise our families.
Finally, Amy is connected. I am sincerely impressed by the number of people she has touched. She’s spent time with advocacy groups for women’s rights, she’s conversed with students and educators, she’s attended local business and board meetings, she’s reached out to our elderly population, she’s connected with old-time Vermonters and new residents, she’s listened to farmers and lawyers and artists and contractors as well as those who are desperately looking for work. In her two-year tenure in Montpelier thus far, she has been involved in drafting important legislation to help protect our precious natural resources. She has carefully considered health care decisions and legislation for solar array siting. Amy is a team player and reaches out to other representatives to better understand the dynamic across the state.
On behalf of Amy, I encourage you to send her back to Montpelier for Middlebury. She knows what she’s getting herself into, she is no longer one of the new representatives in the house, and she is energized and excited to have an opportunity to continue to serve this community she loves at the state level. Please join me in voting for Amy in the primary on or before Aug. 9. Thank you.
Andrea Murray
Middlebury