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Dear Editor:
Many years ago, when I was the parent of four youngsters in the Reading schools, I recall knocking on neighbors’ doors to ask them to vote for an override to Proposition 2½ to benefit the schools. I still recall my astonishment when one neighbor said, “My kids have all graduated. I don’t care about the schools any longer.” I thought that was a short-sighted view then and I still do today. It feels right and proper to me to do what’s needed so that that future generations get an education as good as mine got. It’s also good for the value of my house! The quality of Reading’s schools makes our community a good investment. My husband and I are retired now, on a fixed income, and we watch what we spend very carefully, but we don’t feel town management spends our tax money extravagantly. The fact that it has been 15 years since the last override suggests we are past due for an adjustment. [And if Selectman John Arena is correct that we have the same number of police officers now that we had in 1970, I’d say we are long past due that point!] Once again I would like to urge my friends and neighbors to vote “yes” to support essential services in our town.
Susanne Sullivan
134 Belmont Street, Reading, MA
