Tewksbury Election 2022: Letter To The Editor Roundup

TEWKSBURY, MA — With Tewksbury's 2022 town election rapidly approaching, residents are sharing their views on the contested School Committee race, which features three candidates vying for two open seats.

The election will take place April 2.

The following letters were submitted by residents.

Carla Donahue:

I am writing to express my support for Rich Russo to be elected to the Tewksbury School Committee.

I have known Rich socially for many years but most recently I have seen his leadership skills within the Tewksbury Football/Cheer Community when my children participated in the program. My family had such a positive experience and I feel a lot of that has to do with the guidance of Rich Russo who currently serves as President of the organization. With the uncertainty of Covid and the varying opinions of residents, Rich ensured that safety as well as a positive experience for the children was a main priority. He showed empathy to and collaboration with all stakeholders to ensure a productive and enjoyable season.

Another attribute Rich possesses that will benefit the Tewksbury School Committee is that he is fiscally responsible. He has an extensive background in finance that includes being a CEO/CFO in the private sector and a member of the Tewksbury Finance Committee. This skill set has already benefited the Tewksbury Football/Cheer organization. Under his leadership, participation fees have not increased while creating a robust fundraising program that resulted in obtaining top of the line safety equipment for our children.

Rich is personally vested in this town and our success. As a lifelong resident and parent of children within Tewksbury schools he wants to ensure our children continue to excel within the best environment possible.

His proactive attitude and result driven nature will benefit the Tewksbury School Committee and residents. Rich has proven in the past to be the bridge to connect those with differing viewpoints to find a common ground that will create results.

For these reasons and many others, I will cast my vote for Rich Russo for Tewksbury School Committee, and I urge you to do the same.

Carla Donohue

Tewksbury

Lisa Lynch:

Letter to the Editor:

In Support of Kayla Biagioni-Smith

This letter is written to express my support and endorsement of Kayla Biagioni-Smith for Tewksbury School Committee. I first met Kayla when our daughters were in the same kindergarten class in 2018. As a first-time parent entering the school world I did not know what to expect and honestly felt unsure how to navigate that world. It was evident during that first year in the school system that Kayla was much more than just a fellow parent. Her presence, dedication, involvement and advocacy for the students was palpable. Furthermore, she always presented as approachable, remembering names and faces something that makes her presence safe and welcoming. I am a mental health provider and can attest that the last two years has taken a hard toll on students of all ages. Supporting students outside the classroom has been how I have spent my career however being a parent myself and often collaborating with schools as a professional I can attest from my personal and professional experience that the students who feel supported and safe at school always seem to excel better academically and have more natural coping mechanisms for unexpected changes, adjustments, social challenges, family challenges, and learning struggles. I am confident that Kayla’s goals and philosophies align with this need and her dedication to the students of Tewksbury will help support their school environments in a way that will foster educational, emotional, social, and developmental growth. Kayla is dedicated to enrichment and diversity in additional to academic excellence. Factors that all play into a child’s educational experience and expose children to more than curriculum standards and expectations. These issues are even more essential after the educational and social gaps that were caused by Covid.

Kayla is a fierce advocate in all areas of her life. As a PAC leader, volunteer, community member, member of a military family, mother of two and professional she seems to find the time needed to maintain success in all areas of her life. Despite her many hats she always is focused and present in the role she is engaged in at any moment. She has worked hard to build a strong network within the Tewksbury community and with her natural leadership qualities and her collaboration skills I am confident in her ability to take on this new role as School Committee Member. I will be voting for Kayla on April 2 and encourage all community members to do the same.

Lisa Lynch
44 Hill Street
Tewksbury, MA 01876

Jamey and Maria Cutelis:

Please Vote For Rich Russo School Committee

We have personally known Rich Russo for a number of years and Jamey had the opportunity to work with Rich Russo on significant matters beneficial to our town, none more important than as members of the pandemic related School Reopening Task Force. During that year long process where the task force met every week Rich demonstrated an ability to keep an open mind, process complex information, and partner with all stakeholders to insure the best outcome for all our children and families.

Rich is also the CEO/CFO of a private sector corporation and a member of our town's Finance Committee. His expertise in financial matters is a critical skill for a School Committee member as they oversee a 70 million dollar annual budget.

Rich has proven to us to be a strong and effective leader, he demonstrated all the qualities you would want in a person you entrust to lead our schools. Rich Russo is a consummate professional, extremely bright, passionate and committed to doing what's best for Tewksbury's children and families.

Please join us in voting for Rich Russo for School Committee on April 2nd.

Thank you very much.

Jamey and Maria Cutelis
84 Quail Run
Tewksbury MA 01876

Billy & Mandy Grant:

Please vote for and support the ultimate Tewksbury Volunteer, Rich Russo for School Committee;

We have three children ages 9, 8, and 7 and all attend Tewksbury Public Schools and are very active in sports and activities in town. We first met Rich about 5 years ago after moving to the Town of Tewksbury a couple years prior. It seemed as though every youth sport that our children wanted to be a part of, Rich volunteered his time on the Board of Directors for those organizations, so we took it upon ourselves to get to know him better. Since then we have served on the Board of Directors for Tewksbury Youth Football and Cheerleading for the past 4 years with Rich and have seen firsthand the commitment to our youth that he continues to put at the center of all decisions that are made. Rich formerly served as a member on Tewksbury Boys Basketball League board, Tewksbury Youth Baseball board and still currently serves as the President of Tewksbury Youth Football and Cheerleading (a league with over 450 student athletes registered each year). While serving on the board next to Rich, I can say that we have had differing viewpoints on several issues along the way, but he’s never quick to overshadow ours or anyone else’s viewpoints as the leader of the organization; instead he is open to discussion and fully educating himself on matters before any type of final decisions are put forward to a vote; and those final decisions are always based on the entirety of the program and what makes the most sense for the program.

Rich helped navigate thru uncharted territories that COVID presented for our youth while serving on two youth sports boards as well as the Reopening Schools Task Force. With the knowledge he received he was able to help with solutions to be able to get youth cheerleaders, football and baseball players back on the fields and eventually students back into the classroom. This was no easy task as he took the safety, health and well being of our youth in consideration with the current local, state and federal guidelines and was able to help the kids get back to being more active both mentally and physically as they were able to enjoy activities safely again with their friends, teammates and classmates, and we will forever be grateful for this.

Rich sees hundreds of Tewksbury children and parents each week as he’s serving in his volunteer roles and is able to communicate and educate himself on what it is that parents feel is important for our children overall mental and physical health, well being and overall success. He’s always one to want to learn more about any ongoing issues and jumps right into problem solving mode to help make it better, which ultimately benefits the community.

Rich is a multi tasking professional; while serving in these volunteer roles as well as being a member of the Tewksbury Finance Committee, Rich also serves as the Chief Executive Officer and has been the Chief Financial Officer of Bionik Laboratories for 18 months, all while being a loving, devoted family man.

Whether its managing schedules for over 300 games for an upcoming baseball tournament, representing Tewksbury at the Central Mass Youth Football and Cheer Conference, working the concession stand at Ballou Del Rossi Football Field so parents can enjoy their student athletes’ games, helping lead the way for our kids to safely return to school, or enjoying one of his own kids competitions or games, Rich is always a listener to all and good friend to many of our small town of Tewksbury.

The role of wanting what’s best for our youth in the schools, does not start when a person is elected, nor when they decide the time is right to want to join the School Committee, instead it starts several years before that with the devotion to the youth of this town and taking the time to really learn and hear more about what the community desires are for our children and our schools. Rich is a proven leader, has been a staunch advocate for the youth in this town, his volunteerism is second to none, and he is committed to putting the students before all else and continues to be an ambassador for the youth of Tewksbury. For these reasons and several others; he has our endorsement as the best candidate for Tewksbury School Committee.

Billy & Mandy Grant

Tewksbury Youth Football board members and volunteers

These letters were produced by residents. The views expressed are the authors' own.