Sidonio’s wife says he has long cared for community and good governance

Editor:

As Joe Sidonio’s wife I have observed Joe over decades of service, and throughout his whole tenure as Town Supervisor in Murray.

Many of you may know Joe only through the tawdry letters and pointed arrows that are thrown at him. I see him for who he is. I see his work. I understand his intent. I see his joy in people, his respect for all and his incredible generosity – giving of time and resources to help so many.

It is incredible that he has chosen – and continues to be willing – to give of himself to this town. Thank you, Joe, for all that you do for this community.

Thank you for your courage to tackle the most difficult issues and stand tall in the face of adversity. You are always working to do the right thing and that is noticed and appreciated.

Thank you for lowering our town taxes! This is really, really, meaningful to every person in town.  We need to be able to afford to live here! Lowering taxes has taken a lot of hard work. Thank you.

Thank you for your vision for a healthy community, a community that is moving forward while safeguarding the things that we treasure such as our environment and our history, the beauty of our landscape, our fertile soils and the community that we will leave our children.

Thank you for making the effort to educate yourself about the proper procedures of good government so that important issues such as ethics, management and planning are done correctly – for the benefit of us all. I have watched as you have endlessly pursued training, asked authorities who know the proper answers, and been forever curious about not only what makes a good government, but why some towns flourish and others flail or fail.

Thank you for teaching us all that being involved in our community government is important –and rallying one and all to understand how local government works, to take note of what happens to shape the future of our town, and how our communal tax monies are spent and managed.

Thank you for giving a voice to the underserved and the unheard – and leading us forward to a future where each citizen – no matter their age, occupation, sex, where they went to school, their vision, race, popularity, ethnicity, religion or world view – is equal before our government and treated fairly before all of our government bodies. Too long we have lived in a community driven by fear where some residents are treated with kid gloves and others are purposely mistreated, persecuted and maligned. You have given each and every individual an equal voice.  Thank you.

Thank you for your hours of hard work and your years of volunteer service – Twenty years of giving – as a Marine, on Town and County Planning boards, as the Supervisor – and for the unseen hours and hours of work that you do every day to make our town a better place.  I do not think that the public knows how much time and effort you spend on the job of supervisor.  I think that many would be very surprised at the endless dedication that you have given to ensure that our town is governed properly.

Thank you for your ideas and also for the effort that you put into making other’s good ideas a reality. The list of ways that you have given to this community is amazing – breathing life into Dr. Fiorito’s vision for the restoration of the Fancher War Memorial and its subsequent National Register of Historic Places honor; initiating, sponsoring and funding the stipend for a high school essay contest entitled “The Jewel of Western New York”; paying for the first study about the feasibility of restoring the old Holley High School; establishing the first farmland protection plan in Orleans County…. And so many more initiatives. And now, the glimmer of a possibility of a Quarryman’s park!

Thank you for the bravery and tenacity – Never giving up in the face of years and years of abuse and bullying – even predating your tenure as Supervisor.  Thank you for not giving in to doing political favors in order to gain popularity and remaining true to your values despite the bitter backlash. Thank you for facing, every day, deceitful and calculated maligning of your character,  misrepresentation of your good intent, mean scheme after meaner scheme intended to cause you to fail. You are not the lies that they say about you. You are incredibly brave. Thank you for standing up to the bullies for us all – like David to Goliath.

Thank you for your role as watchdog of our dollars – Using your accounting training to manage correctly our town’s fiscal health.

Thank you for working so well with the leadership of other towns and state offices, elevating our town to a non-political status of note and respect.

Thank you for your respect for older generations, and your appreciation of those with different backgrounds. The warmth of your friendships far and wide, and the joy with which you engage and support such a wide range of people is a remarkable testament to the wonderful person that you are.  You make and keep friends wherever you go and each one treasures your friendship in return.

Keep up the good work you do for us! Voters, please help ensure that good government principles continue to be safeguarded.

Vote for Joe Sidonio in the Republican Primary on June 27.

Amy Machamer

Murray