To the Editor:

I am writing this letter in support of the candidacy of Ed Ackroyd and Amy Damin for the position of Berne-Knox-Westerlo School Board member. I served with both Ed and Amy of the district's Budget Advisory Committee. They both used their vast experience to help the BKW community to offer fiscally responsible budgets (0 percent, 0 percent and 1/2 percent increases in the tax levy) while still striving to meet the needs of our students.

Ed Ackroyd brings strong credentials to the job of school board member. Over the last 30 years, he has done business with both national and international corporations and was involved in both budget and fiscal management. During that time period, Ed conducted national meetings and developed multimillion-dollar engineering procedures which resulted in the saving of 145 jobs. Following his retirement, Ed instead of basking in the Florida sun, chose to dedicate much of his time to helping the children and taxpayers of Berne through School Board and Budget Advisory Board service.

Amy Damin is another worthy candidate. She and her husband, Peter, grew up in small rural central New York towns. They moved to Westerlo because they wanted their three children to have the same closeknit experience with which they grew up. Although Amy is a more recent addition to the Hilltowns, she has immersed herself in the BKW community. She has helped with a wide range of school activities, been an involved supporter of the Westerlo Library, been an active member of the BKW Little League coaching and managing teams with her husband for several years while holding down a full-time job for almost 20 years with the New York State Legislature.

Amy has had numerous roles within the Assembly Conference, including chief of staff for the legislator and Public Affairs duties that allowed her to travel the state through task force work on important issues such as education and agriculture. Currently, she is involved in constituent outreach work and serves on our Budget Advisory Committee.

She is well-versed in how state laws and regulations such as Common Core affect our district and is looking forward to taking the needs and concerns of our school district to our state representatives.

Based upon their extensive experience and qualifications I support Ed Ackroyd and Amy Damin to fill the two BKW Board vacancies. I hope you will do the same.

Richard W. Umholz, chairman

2015 BKW Budget Advisory Committee