I had the pleasure of hosting a small meet and greet for three newcomers to the Fountain Hills political scene: Gerry Friedel, David Spelich and Marcus Bulow von Dennewitz.

For many of us, the tax referendum issue opened our eyes to not only the issues facing us, but also a need for some fresh ideas, professional expertise and a willingness to listen to the public. The two most pressing issues facing Fountain Hills today are our current financial situation and public safety. These candidates are highly qualified to tackle both.

Gerry Friedel and Marcus Bulow von Dennewitz come with private and public finance backgrounds. David Spelich is a retired policeman. It is time we have this expertise on our town council.

More importantly, they want to be our voice and represent the public. They are great listeners and have a strong desire to serve the community.

I was impressed with their interest in hearing our thoughts and questions, which they wrote down. They were sincerely interested in what we had to say. They were able to challenge ideas in a congenial matter. We sorely need the council to have open debate with each other, as well as staff.

They are not running an expensive, glossy mailer and huge yard sign campaign. They are campaigning the hard way – knocking on doors and meeting and listening to the voters.

I happily will be voting for them and hope you will, also.