Cliffs Riffs - Stuph n Nonsense

I had a great opportunity to share some of what makes me tick when the Lowell Ledger asked me some questions the week after my appointment:  Why did you want to be on the Lowell city council?   Seemed like the next logical step for me. I love me some Lowell and I believe that giving back to the community that supports our store is the right thing to do. I have been involved with the Chamber, the Marketing Committee, and have served on the DDA since 2014, but now that we live in Lowell I can be on the Council.   What are some of your favorite things about Lowell?   How long of an answer do you want! The foundation of most of the things I love about Lowell are summed up in the word compassion. Great community that supports each other, in spite of our differences: Pink Arrow, FROM, Rotary, Gilda's Club, and a host of others. Our schools rock - we have great sports teams AND The Rock Fusion Orchestra. We have two rivers - TWO RIVERS! We embrace f...

One of the most divisive subjects to hit Lowell since the Biodigester has been the "Community Garden" set up by a Lowell resident in 2018. Before I go any further, we need to acknowledge how completely ironic it is for anything labeled "community" to create so much division. I say this because the very first definition Merriam-Webster gives for "community" is "a unified body of individuals". By the very definition, anything built around community should be bringing us together with a common cause. One of the reasons I am such a fan of Lowell is the strong community demonstrated in Pink Arrow, Flat River Outreach Ministries and the Food Fight, Lowell Rotary, Lowell Arts, etc etc. While I was NOT a member of the City Council during the Community Garden mess, I was following it very closely for a number of reasons. First, I like anything with the first name of "Community". Secondly, I thought it was really cool for a family to grow...