Although I knew Steve Pritchard from my childhood, I met him only recently. Steve drove the Zamboni at the Nelson Withington skating rink in Brattleboro, and I couldn't begin to number the wonderful memories I have playing hockey in that rink.
I was on the Brattleboro Colonels' first high school hockey team in 1993. The teams before that, as some of you might remember, were called the Brattleboro Nighthawks.
I was playing my first year of club hockey as an 8-year-old when the 1984 Nighthawks went 24-0 and retained the Khan Cup. I watched the Nighthawks with passion and idolized players like Rashad Kannan and later ones like the Bailey brothers and Miles Billings.
I also learned to ski riding the T-Bar just outside the door from the rink and, for a tiny little hill, it was awesome to ski Living Memorial Park at night.
I wasn't aware of this, but at one point, the town manager of Brattleboro presented Steve, who was the Recreation and Parks Department manager at the time, with a conundrum: Shut down the ice rink or the ski hill.
Could you imagine having to decide if the skating rink or the ski hill will be shut down?
However, this story doesn't end with an outcry of disappointed children and parents. The outcome was amazing.
Through a series of events, the ski hill was motioned to be shut down. However, with Steve's assistance, the ski hill remained open through volunteer efforts.
Steve helped turn a desperate situation into a win for all the children and families surrounding Brattleboro by keeping the ski hill open and thriving, all while being run by spirited volunteers.
The town of Guilford could desperately use Steve Pritchard's municipal experience and leadership qualities. Perhaps he could even convince the current Selectboard from spending tens of thousands in tax revenue for a Burlington law firm to litigate on their behalf.
For the good of Guilford, I hope you will consider voting for Steve Pritchard to fill the two-year Selectboard seat.
Jason Herron
Guilford
This letter to the editor was submitted to The Commons.