Letter: 'Karen Gifford for Board of Finance'

To the Editor:

Karen Gifford has the experience, maturity, and temperament to serve the Town well on
the Board of Finance. With her 40 years of work as an investment banker in the areas of
corporate and municipal finance, she has honed the skills required for all the tasks of
the Board of Finance.

As a long-time resident, she knows the workings of the Town well, not only in the
financial realm, but also from her service on the Board of Assessment Appeals and on
the Board of the Mark Twain Library.

Over the 30-plus years I have known her, I have seen Karen approach issues
concerning the Town fairly and intelligently—gathering the facts, talking to residents,
and thinking about creative ways to approach the continuing need to balance the cost of
essential services with the impact on taxpayers. As a strong supporter of our schools,
she will bring welcome fresh thinking to how we can continue to maintain our high-level
of educational programming, by looking for ways to diversify our tax base beyond our
current reliance almost exclusively on homeowners.

There is no “one size fits all” solution to financing the school system and town services
that are so important to the Town. We need Karen on the Board of Finance to address
the financial health of the Town, now and into the future, with creativity, experience and
fairness.

Please vote for Karen Gifford for the Board of Finance.

Tina Miller
Seventy Acre Road
Redding