Dear Editor:

Jason Putnam of Wiscasset introduces himself to campaign audiences as a “self-employed carpenter,” which is just what he is. And that’s probably as good a way as any to appeal to the small-town and rural District 87 in which he’s competing this year for a seat in the Maine State House of Representatives.

Jason has been inspired, he says, by a passage in Anne Frank’s “Diary of a Young Girl” — “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” So, soon after moving to Maine from rural Michigan with his Wiscasset-native wife Rachel, a nurse, Jason began looking for ways to get involved with his new community. The first stop was a position on the town Ordinance Review Committee. Then came the more demanding and time-consuming responsibility of serving on Wiscasset’s School Board, where he still sits.

Jason now is running for a seat in the legislature primarily because of what he sees as a need for much stronger state support for public education. His concern has prompted him to travel to Augusta a number of times to lobby our local representatives on the need for more education funding.

My wife and I no longer have children in school, but as we age in Maine we’ve come to appreciate the fact that in the next stage of our lives we’re going to depend more and more on the competence and skills of the next generation. That means we want the schools that train that generation to have the resources they require -- good teachers and administrators, up-to-date and well maintained facilities, and curriculum options to fit the needs and preferences of the students and the communities where they live. And we want state fiscal policy that does not sap the ability of local jurisdictions to achieve these goals.

For us, the choice on Election Day is clear. We want a government that places a priority on education, as does Jason. A vote for him can make a difference in the lives of Mainers.

Tom Eichler

Wiscasset