 Hello! My name is Alyssa Brewer. Please vote for me as Counselor-At-Large for Amherst's first 13-member Town Council. You will be offered two separate ballots when you go to your usual voting precinct on Tuesday, November 6th, or request an absentee ballot, or even vote early, and there will be multiple places and times to vote early between October 22nd and November 2nd. One ballot you receive will be the usual, even-year, state ballot for state representatives, state senator, governor, etc. And that state ballot will also include five important ballot questions. Your November 6th municipal ballot will include four district and six at-large candidates, and you will vote for two district counselors and three at-large counselors. You must be registered to vote by Wednesday, October 17th. Please go to amherstma.gov for more information. On that municipal ballot, I am one of six candidates for three at-large seats on your new 13-member Town Council. I am running because our community needs experienced, passionate, proven leadership at this historic moment in Town Governance. I have served in Townwide Elected Office for 16 years and can bridge the transition to a constituent-based legislature that incorporates far more than 13 people's views. Local government decisions are sometimes underappreciated opportunity to also make a real difference in our daily lives, even as we continuously challenge everything that is wrong in our wider world. This historic election sets the stage for how our residents govern ourselves for years to come. I know how things work and how we can make things work better. Our new Town Council needs counselors who have a record of crafting workable solutions by continuously building and rebuilding coalitions with a variety of people around different issues, including people who disagree with both the means and the ends. And my website includes a number of endorsement statements reflecting how I've worked with people in our community. I have now served effectively with six different Town Managers and 11 different Select Board members, while both initiating and analyzing policy to direct the Town Manager and determine whether to recommend legislation to Town Meeting, working with not only the advice of both appointed committee members and staff, but also with members of the public. I was Select Board Chair during the shocking death of a beloved Town Manager, and together we navigated the hiring of both an interim and a permanent Town Manager. On your behalf, I have prepared and delivered testimony to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means, the Conference Committee on Marijuana Legislation, the Cannabis Control Commission, and the Treasurer's Alcohol Task Force, as well as providing leadership to the Hampshire County Select Boards Association. I have continuously fought for what this community values, while insisting upon the transparency we are not only required to have under open meeting law, but that we also cherish as part of direct democracy. The purpose of Town Governance is not to stop things that don't seem quite perfect, is to pursue the things our residents value. We value affordable housing, so we need to build it, even if the location doesn't immediately seem perfect. We value public education, so we need to fix our school infrastructure, even if we aren't 100% in agreement with the school committee about the educational programs being offered. We value leaving our children a habitable planet, so we need to explore multiple alternatives to fossil fuels, while we find better ways to get people downtown, to buy both things and experiences, and to build responsibly, but not make it impossible to build it all. We value diversity, so finding ways to connect various communities of interest to the discussions and decisions they care about must be our daily challenge. We can move forward together. Please contact me through the campaign website, elissaforammers.com, which focuses on three areas, local economy, transparent governance, and proven leadership. Please vote for Elisa Brewer at large on Tuesday, November 6. Thank you for your time, and thank you, Amherst Media.