[Editor's note: The Letter to the Editor below was submitted by Stoneham School Building Committee chairperson Jeanne Craigie.]

Dear Town Meeting members,

On behalf of the School Building Committee I want to thank you for your support and confidence in the Middle School project at last week’s Town Meeting. Your positive vote gets us one step closer to the April 3 Ballot question. The excitement and energy in Town Hall was just what many of us had hoped for, along with good questions, good debate and a terrific outcome. We need to carry that enthusiasm forward to a much more difficult task: Asking all the voters to support the Debt Exclusion by ballot. A task we have prepared for over the past 24 months. Facts we can defend, facts that make sense and facts that make this project the most cost effective for the town within our budget and the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) guidelines. Please continue with our progress, attend our meetings and spread the good news. It's the right time and the right thing for Stoneham to embrace.

I leave you with this wonderful quote from a Stoneham High School graduate, I believe it's exactly the common vision we need for our children and this community: “People who don't always agree with one another can put their differences aside and use their strengths to channel their common vision toward achieving a higher goal. This is the catalyst for true change and it seems to be happening!” said Jennifer Chaplin Cooper SHS ’94.

Thanks,

Jeanne Craigie

Chairperson, Stoneham School Building Committee