LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Busse Deserves the Chance to Lead Acton

The rarest commodity in government is visionary leadership. Margaret Busse is a true visionary leader.  We should consider ourselves very fortunate that such a capable, caring, and trustworthy person is willing to serve as our Selectman, and we hope that you will join us in voting for her in the upcoming election.

We have enjoyed raising our four children in Acton over the past thirteen years.  Our family has benefited greatly from our town’s commitment to first-rate public education.  We sincerely hope that the future will be as bright as the recent past, but this future far from assured.

Despite our love for Acton, it has not always been clear to us that our leaders really have a vision for where the town is headed.  Without a clear vision and leadership, it is easy to unintentionally drift off course and miss important opportunities.  So we were very interested to learn from Margaret about her work as chair of the Acton 2020 planning committee. 

If you have not seen the Acton 2020 plan, you really must read the summary at http://bit.ly/acton2020.  The plan was clearly a collaborative effort involving many people.  However, having known Margaret for many years, we see signs of her contributions throughout.  The plan benefits greatly from Margaret’s clarity of vision, her commitment to data-driven decision-making, her ability to focus teams on a limited number of achievable goals, and her easy communication style.

On a personal note, Margaret is a longtime friend and we have served together as volunteers in many contexts. She is compassionate to all, especially those in need, and is willing to sacrifice her own convenience to help make a better life for others.  She has a gift for motivating people to step up and make a difference. And as a mother of four (soon five) children, she is personally invested in making our community a great place for future generations.

We hope that Margaret will have the opportunity to help realize the exciting future laid out in the Acton 2020 plan, and we know she will put everything she has into it.  People of Margaret’s caliber are rarely available to serve on a local level. Let’s not miss this chance. Let’s elect her, support her, then stand back and watch as she puts her amazing talents to work on our behalf. 

Sincerely, 

Jeff & Alyson Whatcott