Letter to Editor: Foster for Easton Ward One

I was raised to believe that service to the community is not only a duty but one of the most satisfying endeavors that a person may undertake. This is true whether that service is coaching youth teams (such as I did for 27 years), volunteering to help a charity or simply helping someone in need.

For me it has also meant serving the public in an official capacity as State’s Attorney, Delegate to the Maryland General Assembly and President of the Talbot County Council.

These have all been positions that offered the opportunity to take a great community and make it even better. I am asking for your support this coming Tuesday to continue that service as the representative from Ward One on the Easton Town Council.

Because I have lived in Ward I for 50 years I know the community well, and have served it in various ways. When first Hyde Park and then Hazelwood Drive were threatened with the destruction of homes, and the community at large with the loss of jobs, I was among the first to speak out. Likewise when Memorial Hospital announced plans to move out ofEaston and the U. S. Postal Service announced plans to close the regional sorting and distribution center here, I did not wait to see which way the political wind was blowing; rather I spoke up for my community and worked hard to fight those plans. It is important to have someone on the Council who will combat these challenges should they return in the future.

Easton like many other places is struggling with drug related crime in general and the heroin epidemic in particular. During my time in the Talbot County State’s Attorney’s Office I was instrumental in establishing a narcotics task force as well as a criminal investigative function and the Eastern Shore’s first victim-witness unit. With almost a decade and a half’s experience in working with the law enforcement community, culminating in my election as State’s Attorney, I have gained a unique insight into the issues it faces.

Other issues related to first responders have been important to me as well. As a member of the County Council I supported programs to expand the paramedic program, modernize the salary structure for the Sheriff’s Department, place portable defibrillators throughout the county, constantly update the 911 operation, increase the funding for volunteer fire departments, relocate the helicopter base to Easton – the list goes on. In light of the present concerns about recruitment of volunteers, I am particularly proud of having introduced a state tax deduction for volunteerfiremen as a Delegate and designed a retirement benefit for them as a member of Council.

With 50 years in the Ward, I share its needs and concerns because they are my own. I ask for your support at the polls on Tuesday so that I may continue to work for you.

Philip Carey Foster