Don Lowe First Selectman Column 05/04/2026
The Community Expo last Saturday was a huge success despite a little rain and below-average temperatures. Many people stopped by the various booths of community organizations and in addition enjoyed the live music and good eats. (The Daily Market provided brick over pizza, and it was absolutely delicious!) This event (this was the 3rd Annual Expo) is certainly a yearly Sherman staple going forward and I thank the Sherman Arts Commission and the Conservation Commission for their leadership and good ideas for making this happen.
On Sunday I had the honor of attending the Blue and Gold Banquet for the Sherman Scouts Pack 84. Sherman is well organized when it comes to Scouting and I encourage parents and their children to take advantage of the program. As evidenced by the awards given out on Sunday, the young people participating are learning a variety of skills and are also learning how to be positive and productive members of their communities. I was very impressed by these youngsters and equally impressed by the adults, the Scouting leaders, who spend their time guiding them.
The Town and Sherman School budgets both passed. The Town vote count was 326 YES and 137 NO; the School vote count was 318 YES 145 NO. I wish that more people had voted, but budget referendums here in Sherman (and our neighboring towns too) have never featured a very high vote count. I’m not sure why that is. At any rate, the Yes votes made up 70% of the votes on the Town side and it was nearly that high for the School budget. It’s nice to have that behind us.
We are currently chip sealing several of our Town roads. Most of this work may be done by the time this column is published. Chip sealing is a road surface process that we apply to roads that are in “pretty good” shape but are showing signs of possible future wear and tear. This is about eight times less expensive than total resurfacing, and it extends the life of the roadway by five to seven years. In chip sealing, a layer of oil is applied with stones laid on soon after. The subsequent traffic presses the stones into the oil. This requires a little patience sometimes by drivers as there is, for a short time, loose stones on the roadway. But, as I wrote, they eventually blend into the oil and make a smooth road. There’s lots to gain for a small inconvenience.
Sometimes I am overwhelmed with good feelings and gratitude when I think of how much people care about their communities and the world around, about how much positivity they bring to the world. Maybe what has been the best part of my First Selectman’s job is witnessing the good work performed all around us right here in Sherman. It’s easy if you read the news or hang out on social media to be overwhelmed by negativity too. But honestly, good is still winning in this world. In fact, it’s not even a close race: good wins. And in the wise words of Saint Francis Assisi, "Remember that when you leave this earth, you can take with you nothing that you have received—only what you have given."
