To the Editor:

I whole-heartedly wish to express my support for Mitch Bolinsky as our state representative. In addition to his strong constituent service record, his critical professional endorsements speak for themselves. What are some of the factors to having and building a successful community?

*Excellence in education

*Blossoming real estate

*Successful small businesses

The endorsements for Mitch Bolinsky send a clear message about this candidate, his values, and the solid foundation from which he advocates and works for us in Newtown on so many facets that affect our quality of life. To date, Mitch's formal endorsers include:

*The Connecticut Education Association (CEA), the umbrella advocacy group for 43,000 Connecticut public education teachers and retirees. Mitch stands with them on many core educational issues like Common Core, student testing, data privacy, and more.

*The Connecticut Association of Realtors, representing more than 16,000 members.

*The National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB), the nation's leading small business association with members in every state.

Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA), the state's largest business group, representing thousands of companies from every corner of the state.

Mitch is focused on our entire community and does not single out specific groups, issues, and causes to support. If it's for the good of Newtown, he's on it. From our children to our seniors, from personal matters to advocacy for business, he listens and acts. Recently, Representative Bolinsky was honored by the Newtown BOE for his bipartisan leadership, teamwork in righting a wrong and helping to have $180,000 of special education funding restored. He was also honored by AARP National and AARP Connecticut for his work and advocacy in passage of the CARE Act. Again, a lot of bipartisan work led to this victory for senior citizens. For the national award, Mitch was one of just two Connecticut legislators honored.

And these don't even address that Mitch is an all-around good human being who cares about Newtown. He's in it for us… not for himself or special interest groups.

My support for Mitch Bolinsky is in my capacity as resident of Newtown. My opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of the Newtown Legislative Council of which I am a member.

Neil Chaudhary

Southbrook Lane, Newtown         September 27, 2016