Fire Safety Taskforce Candidates to Host Open House

Six candidates campaigning for seats on the new Central Coventry Fire District Board of Directors will host an open house on Wednesday, providing an opportunity for voters to meet them and learn about key issues facing the new board.

The event will be held at Club Jogues (184 Boston St.) from 7 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, June 26, and voters are encouraged to attend.

Candidates endorsed by the Taskforce are Fred Gralinski, Helen Quinn, Cynthia Fagan-Perry, Robert Hadley, and Marie Baker. All were endorsed after nomination by a three-person nominating committee, and after a vote of the full Taskforce.

All six have been endorsed by the Coventry Citizens Taskforce, and each of their names will appear on the June 29 ballot. The election will be held from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, with Town Hall being the only polling location.

Fred Gralinski, one of the candidates and a co-chair of the Taskforce said he hopes residents would take advantage of this opportunity meet the candidates.

“This has all the look and feel of a typical election campaign but it is only 30 days in duration, it involves only part of Coventry, candidates have had little opportunity to raise funds for typical campaign mainstays such as lawn signs or mailings, and there have been few opportunities for voters to meet and learn about the candidates," said Gralinski.

“This is an opportunity to get around this, and I hope the public will participate. The more who know and understand the candidates they are voting for, the more likely they are to end up with elected board members who reflect their views and desires."

“We got into this mess because too few of us were paying attention," he continued. "I’m hopeful we’ve learned our lesson."