All eight candidates for East Greenwich Town Council and 7 candidates for East Greenwich School Committee turned out for the “Meet the Candidates” night sponsored by the Teen Leadership Consortium (TLC). About 60 people attended the event, which was held in the auditorium at St. Luke’s Church.

Town Council candidate Ed Field talks with two members of the Teen Leadership Consortium.

Candidates were given three minutes to address the audience and were encouraged to speak about issues important to young people. Some candidates took the opportunity to talk about challenges facing young people today, like stress and bullying. Others recounted related stories from their own youth. School Committee member Mary Ellen Winter, running for her third term, suggested that someone from the TLC start attending School Committee meetings, as a youth representative. Town Council candidate Bill Stone posed questions of his own – did the young people like East Greenwich? Did they think they would want to live here as adults?

Town Council candidates Robert Vespia (far left) and Bill Stone and School Committee candidate David Green talk with members of the TLC. 

Comments from all the candidates can be seen on a video from the event posted above.

Town Councilors serve two-year terms and all five seats are up for reelection every two years. This year, only one sitting councilor is running for reelection – Michael Isaacs, a Republican. The others running for a seat on the council are, in alphabetical order, Sue Cienki (R), Gene Dumas (R), Ed Field (R), Mark Schwager (D), Bill Stone (D), Sean Todd (R), and Robert Vespia (I). You can read more about the Town Council candidates here.

School Committee members serve four-year terms and seven people serve on the School Committee, with elections staggered. This year, four seats are open, with three of the four members running for reelection: Chairman David Green (R), Jack Sommer (I), and Mary Ellen Winter (R). The other candidates are Michael Fain (I), Christen Meyer (R), David Osborne (D), and Yan Sun (I). You can read more about the School Committee candidates here.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 4.

In the top photo: TLC member Zoe Hinman talks with School Committee candidate Yan Sun at the TLC’s ‘Meet the Candidates’ event Wednesday. Credits: EG News

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