By John Plestina,Special to the Sun Journal

SABATTUS – Five candidates are seeking one seat on the Board of Selectmen at the March 4 municipal election.

Jolene Lacoste Danover, Guy Desjardins, William Henshaw, Polly McCauley and Jon Mennealy are seeking election to the seat being vacated by Rudy Gayton, who has served for nearly two decades.

School Board Chairman Robert Gayton Jr., and Gary Blais are seeking re-election with opposition from Sheila Clifford and Steven Reed. The two highest vote-getters will serve on the board.

Sanitary-Water District Board Chairman Richard Behr and incumbent Donald Laliberty are seeking re-election with opposition from Walter Wood.

All positions are for three years.

The polls will be open at the new Town Hall on Middle Road from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, March 4. Town meeting will be held in June.

Board of Selectmen

Jolene Lacoste Danover

Age: 54

Occupation: Homemaker

Political experience: Candidate for selectman in 2004

Community service: Board of Directors, Town Square Library; officer of the Hemophilia Association of Maine and former officer of hemophilia associations in Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Quote: “I’m really concerned about the fiscal responsibility of the town after two years of monitoring the town. I would like to see much more involvement of the townsfolk.”

Guy Desjardins

Age: 52

Occupation: Chief deputy of the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Department for 10 years; 18 years with the Sabattus Police Department including nine as chief of police. Owner of Imperial Luxury Limousine

Political experience: Five years on the Board of Selectmen during the 1980s and ’90s, two years as chairman; four years on the school committee.

Community service: Chairman of the Sabattus Regional Credit Union Board of Trustees; American Legion; Elks Lodge

Quote: “One of the reasons I’m running now is the town is moving forward and I would like to continue that.” Tax reform is going to be a challenge in the coming few years, he said. “If we can save a few dollars and do better, that’s great.”

William Henshaw

Age: 73

Occupation: Retired purchasing manager

Political experience: Finance Committee of the town of Whitman, Mass.

Community service: Sabattus Republican Committee chairman; volunteer driver for Disabled American Veterans; Military Order of Purple Heart

Quote: “I am hoping to express the feelings of the people I have been talking to who feel the town is spending too much money. There are things people want but if the town can’t afford it, they shouldn’t have it,”

Polly McCauley

Age: 52

Occupation: Owns grooming and boarding kennel business; former training developer for L.L. Bean

Political experience: First-time candidate

Community service: Volunteer at the polls for several elections; gives CPR training; Lewiston-Auburn Kennel Club; former paramedic firefighter in Colorado

Quote: “The most important goal for any selectman is to further the growth and enhancement of our community. We have a lot of growth opportunities with the new turnpike exit. I’m committed to being a part of the solution and not a part of the problem.”

Jon Mennealy

Age: 49

Occupation: Employed by International Paper

Political experience: First-time candidate

Community service: More than 20 years in the Sabattus Fire Department; past president of the Sabattus Parents, Teachers and Friends Club; coach for the Sabattus Recreation Club; organizer of Oak Hill Youth Soccer League; Martin’s Point Park Committee; Sabattus Charter Commission

Quote: “I have been interested in getting a town charter. I think the town is getting big enough that we need to check on all organizational aspects. I think there are several gray areas. Sabattus needs to decide whether we want to be a bedroom community or if we want to go after commercial development.”

School board

Gary Blais

Age: 40

Occupation: Machinist

Political experience: Two years on the school board

Community service: Hunter safety instructor; church volunteer

Quote: Blais said he wants to continue to work to ensure that all of the requirements of the federally mandated No Child Left Behind are met by setting policies in compliance with the Maine Learning Results.

Sheila Clifford

Age: 56

Occupation: Manager, Formed Fiber Technologies

Political experience: First-time candidate

Community service: Board of Directors of Big Brothers Big Sisters; Board of Directors of Rural Community Action Ministry; volunteer for a reading program in Sabattus

Quote: “I am really concerned with the educational system. I would like to help every child to reach their full potential, especially with No Child Left Behind.”

Robert Gayton Jr.

Age: 43

Occupation: Plumber-pipefitter

Political experience: Six years on the school board, current chairman

Community service: Baseball coach with Cal Ripkin Baseball and director of the league; Webster Masonic Lodge

Quote: “Education is going through a big turnaround right now. They’re leaning more toward the Learning Results. It’s not an average of what they know. It’s exactly what they know. That’s the biggest change in 25 to 30 years. The school budget is a large part of the town budget.” He added that he would work to ensure that money is appropriated wisely.

Steven Reed

Age: 41

Occupation: Disabled

Political experience: Second time running for office

Community service: Volunteer, Muscular Dystrophy Association and Children’s Miracle Network; active in church

Quote: Reed said he would work to hold the line on spending. “You need to get the most value out of every dollar spent. They have a new school that I don’t believe will be big enough in the future and that I don’t believe they will be able to build onto.”

Sanitary Water District Board of Trustees

Richard Behr

Age: 68

Occupation: Retired; part-time code enforcement officer for 30 years

Political experience: Twenty-five years as a Sanitary-Water District trustee; two terms as selectmen in the 1970s

Community service: Responsible for the development of Martins Point Park

Quote: Behr said he would work to keep rates down and try to extend the system. “Because it is a rate-payer system, the more ratepayers you have, the lower you keep rates.”

Donald Laliberty

Age: 64

Occupation: Drywall contractor

Political experience: Six years service on the Sanitary-Water District Board of Trustees; former Planning Board member; chairman of the Board of Appeals; former park commission member

Community service: Active in church

Quote: “We’re trying to expand at a moderate rate and keep rates down. We’re trying to work on a tight budget.” He added that he is concerned that some people on fixed retirement incomes could have difficulty paying higher rates.

Walter Wood

Age: 71

Occupation: Retired director of the physical plant at Bates College

Political experience: Former member of the Sanitary-Water District Board of Trustees

Community service: None

Quote: “Now that I am retired and I have the time, I can be involved.” He added that his experience with Bates College and in construction would help him as a trustee.

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