To the editor: Brickner says he sees how Montpelier decisions impact small towns

Eight years ago, my wife and I chose to make our home in Pomfret. This community welcomed us completely – neighbors who showed up, looked after one another, and asked only that we do the same. I have tried to live up to that ever since.

Giving back has always mattered to me and doing so here has come naturally. For nearly eight years, I’ve served Pomfret as town auditor, on the Zoning Board, and now as Select Board chair. In a town with no professional manager, this kind of service teaches you how a decision made in Montpelier actually lands on a road crew, a small business or a school budget.

In my professional life, I am an attorney for small and early-stage companies. My clients are founders and small businesses, and my job is to stand between them and the much larger interests across the table. That is not so different from what Vermont itself faces. We are a small state facing larger forces that would happily reshape our home for their benefit.

I am running for state Senate because our challenges – affordability, housing, schools, emergency services, our working landscape – are not separate problems. They are one pressure, showing up in different places. Solving them takes someone who understands how policy is written and what it takes to carry it out at home.

On Aug. 11, I would be grateful for your vote.

Benjamin Brickner
Pomfret