WILTON — Voters will go to the polls Tuesday to choose two selectpersons and a director for Regional School Unit 9.
Select Board Chairperson David Leavitt and Selectperson Keith Swett are unopposed for reelection to their seats.
Amanda Caruso and Louise Hiltz are seeking the school board seat held by Irv Faunce, who is not seeking reelection.
Amanda Caruso of Wilton stands with her children June 1 at Bass Park in Wilton. She is seeking election Tuesday to the Regional School Unit 9 board of directors. From left are children Maggie, Caroline, Danny and Emma Caruso. Brian Ponce/Franklin Journal
Caruso, a mother of four, is the newest member of the board of directors for Western Maine Play Museum and secretary for the Tyngtown Club, a 200-year-old philanthropic women’s club in Wilton. She volunteers for the RSU 9 Food Pantry at W.G. Mallett School in Farmington.
“Schools are truly the heart of a community,” she said. “Parent involvement in schools is incredibly important and can make a real difference. Teachers and staff can feel the support when parents invest their time, and kids see it too. I plan to continue my efforts to support our RSU 9 schools as a (Parent Teacher Fellowship) member, as a volunteer, and hopefully as a member of the board of directors.”
Hiltz has lived in Wilton for 25 years and her three children are graduates of Mt. Blue High School in Farmington. She is active with her church and for 15 years has led a support group for the National Alliance of Mental Illness at Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington.
Louise Hiltz of Wilton is seeking election to the Regional School Unit 9 board of directors Tuesday. Submitted Photo
“I would like to bring people together,” Hiltz said. “I am a person who gets along well with people as a rule, no matter what walk of life I’ve always been in. And so, I wouldn’t be coming in with an agenda of ‘Well, I think you guys should do it my way.’ Everybody’s different, and we just listen. I would do a good job of listening to the other board members and the community.”
Voters will also decide Tuesday on whether to approve the proposed $41.7 million school budget for 2023-24. It’s 4.3% more than this fiscal year, which ends June 30.
The other towns voting on the budget Tuesday are Chesterville, Farmington, Industry, New Sharon, New Vineyard, Starks, Temple, Vienna and Weld.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
