After a spirited campaign, the voters of West Tisbury have spoken and elected Kent Healy as selectman. We congratulate Kent and wish him well. Our hope is that the town will continue to enjoy the good government and thoughtful leadership for which it has become known.

Along with the committee to re-elect Richard Knabel, there are many in West Tisbury who wish publicly to recognize his 11 years of exceptionally generous and accomplished service as an elected official of the town: two on the finance committee and nine as selectman. He has been remarkably dedicated to our town, attending weekly to the various issues of town affairs large and small, volunteering freely to serve on committees Islandwide, bringing careful budgetary overview to many town projects, and attending more meetings around the Island than seems humanly possible.

A distinguished environmentalist and longtime chairman of Riverkeeper, a pivotal organization in saving the Hudson River, Richard brought a wealth of useful experience and savvy to our town. With his elected colleagues, he has worked hard to give all issues a dispassionate and thoughtful hearing and successfully brokered creative agreements on controversial issues within the town and around the Island. As a gifted advocate and writer, he has always taken the time to “read the fine print” and contribute to clear, well-balanced documents reflecting the will of the town. We are fortunate to have had Richard working on our behalf for these 11 years. He loves West Tisbury and has earned the appreciation and thanks of us all.

Hunter Moorman
West Tisbury