To the Editor:

Who are you? 

When you look in the mirror, who do you see? A father, mother, grandparent, sibling, etc., or do  you see a Conservative, a Democrat, a Republican? The politics in the town of Berne are  destroying our community.  

Political parties should not define who you are. You should define who you are and what you believe in and how your parents and community shaped your lives. My husband and I and our children have been in this community for 40 years. How fortunate for our children to grow up  in the country and feel a sense of freedom. 

Working for the town for more than 25 years, I have met and lost some wonderful neighbors over the years. This was a sense of service to my community. Having held many positions in the town, I feel the most challenging is that of a town clerk, and Hon. [Kristin] de Oliveira has done an  incredible job bringing the office up to date and being motivated for education and learning.  

Being on the town board was such a privilege for me to continue to shape the future of our town. Supervisor [Dennis] Palow was an excellent supervisor to work with and we all felt we were on  the same page.

As time went on, it was beginning to be clear that Al Thiem and Leo Vane knew  nothing about municipal law and the duties of the town board. In executive session, I would  point this out to them, so as not to embarrass them in public, but they would never believe me and felt I was always lying to them.

When my term was up and I decided to retire, Supervisor Palow and the board thought Joe Martin would be a great choice. Being the planning board chairman, Mr. Martin was well versed in the aspects of managing a municipality. We worked with Mr. Martin from June through December to familiarize him with future plans. The board was  excited to be able to move forward so easily as Mr. Martin ran unopposed. 

Immediately, Mr. Martin started trying to undermine many policies that were in place; i.e. changing from Lamont Engineers, who has been so good to the town; the insurance company, and more.

Unknowingly recording a person in the town hall to gain information! How despicable, and then he tried to blackmail Supervisor Palow to get him to resign.

Unnecessary spending on free lights at the park (which when finished would have cost the town $9,000), but uselessly spent $1,500; requesting the Community Center be re-designed (at the cost of $2,500, which was not in the budget) even though there already was a design and — on and on it went.  

Enter the three stooges — Joe, Al, and Leo — who decide to try to coerce Dennis to resign his position as supervisor. They should have known Dennis would not walk out on his oath. So, because they didn’t get their way, the three stooges decide to resign, trying to force Dennis’s hand to resign for the sake of the town, which would have been the right thing for Dennis to do.

However, because they didn’t realize they couldn’t take the resignations back (hello? Who was supposed to check that  one?) they left the town without a board for eight months! Again, the three stooges had a majority vote, duh, and could’ve done what they wanted without leaving the town so vulnerable.

Supervisor Palow, Deputy Supervisor [Thomas] Doolin, Town Clerk de Oliveira and Senior Account Clerk [Andrea] Borst kept the town running. By these acts, those board members were hurting people and their  families.

Accusations flying, people driving past homes and screaming obscenities because of false information. Neighbors and friends no longer speak to you because you continue to do your job! 

Up comes the Republican caucus, run by no other than Joe Martin, with Al Thiem also on the committee. It is an open meeting so I decided to see what they were going to try to do. When I made  a comment, I was told I couldn’t speak as I was a Democrat! Really? I thought I was a person  and a resident. 

The audience was not pleased as most of the nominees were Democrats or Conservatives. Can you believe they did not nominate their own town clerk! That is just disgusting; and Leo Vane nominates, seconded by Al Thiem, Chance Townsend, whom they demanded resign as an employee of the town.

Trying to take away Randy [Baswinger]’s job as highway superintendent was, by far, very sad to  see. Here is a man who has worked for the town for over 12 years and is now facing very difficult times for him and his family. And they want to take his job away because they’re mad at him? I have seen many highway superintendents come and go and Randy pulled the highway department together.

Are you sure these are the people you want to listen to? How can someone who walks away from their oath to the town and the Constitution be trusted? If they don’t get their way, they will walk away.  

After 25-plus years of working here, I know many things about the town and, trust me, this is just the  tip of the iceberg. We need to remember what is important to us in life and to help our neighbor, not try to destroy him. 

When my son passed away in July it showed me some revelations about people that were very  disheartening. Our community needs to pull itself together and figure out what really matters in  life. 

So, when you look in the mirror, who do you see? 

Anita Clayton

Berne

Editor’s note: In response to Anita Clayton’s criticisms of him, Joe Martin told The Enterprise, “Unfortunately Anita hasn’t realized the common denominator. She’s jumped from party to party for support, lost so many friends from her actions and above all diminished her own character.” Clayton had been endorsed by Democrats for most of her political career, but was spurned by the Democratic Committee prior to the 2021 election, when she ran for a town board seat. Nevertheless, she won the election and went on to serve as Republican Supervisor Dennis Palow’s deputy.

Clayton responded, “I have stayed a registered Democrat. It is also common practice to try to get all the party lines …. I did not care what party Dennis was affiliated with. It was my duty to serve the residents.”