I am happy to be running for a position on the Bristol library board, having moved back to Vermont this year after living for 30 years out west. I grew up in Burlington, went to Clarkson College/University and then Tufts Medical School, became an anesthesiologist, a stressful position from which I retired early. I then became a stay-at-home father keenly interested in leading my two children into music and wilderness activities.

I have valued community greatly since I first participated in Lake Placid’s extraordinary Camp Treetops as a 9-year-old. The camp offered me the usual camp activities but also hard workdays, achieved only by working well with a diverse group of people. I attended this formative camp for years, became a counselor, and later sent both of my children there as campers. The camp remains my favorite model for community.

With my two children on secure paths to young adulthood, I have returned to Vermont to be near my aging parents. I am currently a ski coach at Sugarbush, a member of Middlebury’s First Congregational Church choir, and am looking to build more community in my new hometown. (I’ve started a singing group in my home if anyone is interested in joining…) I believe that all of our lives benefit from more light and playfulness, more equanimity, and more voices.

The library matters to me as it is a place where all are welcome, can congregate while being sheltered from the elements, and share ideas in a safe social space. We need such spaces.

Peter Hewitt

Bristol