Upon the adjournment, sine die, of our Annual Town Meeting next April, I will have completed thirty years of service as Moderator of the Town of Wayland.
                                   
Although the General Laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts merely provide that “the Moderator shall preside and regulate the proceedings, decide all questions of order and make public declarations of all votes,” I have tried to conduct our town meetings fairly, impartially and with a modicum of humor, while treating each voter in town meeting assembled with respect, because I believe that giving everyone a reasonable opportunity to be heard at town meeting contributes to a higher goal than efficiency, namely the peace of Wayland.

During my years of service, a number of important innovations have also been instituted to make our legislative process more efficient and user-friendly, including the initial publication of the rules that govern our Town Meetings and The Moderator’s Handbook for Wayland Town Meetings, time limits for debate, pro and con microphones, and an equal opportunity for opponents to present their case.  As a result, the time required to dispose of the average article has been cut in half.  None of this would have been possible, of course, without the help and cooperation of the boards, officials and voters of the Town of Wayland.

But, in the words of Ecclesiastes (Kohelet in Hebrew) “there is a time for everything  under the sun” and I believe that the time has come for Wayland to elect a new  Moderator.

Therefore, I will not take out the usual nomination papers next January.  I am confident that Wayland’s voters will make a good choice from among the candidates who will run for Moderator next Spring.

In order to help our new Moderator, I have created a Town Meeting Advisory Committee and three subcommittees composed of some of the brightest, most knowledgeable and dedicated residents of Wayland, who have been meeting since last September and working diligently to make our town meetings more efficient and comfortable.  I expect that they will prove to be a valuable resource as our new Moderator assumes his or her duties.

As a refugee from Nazi Germany, a totalitarian regime, I want you to know how grateful I am to the voters of Wayland for granting me the privilege of presiding over a true democracy, which is Wayland’s Town Meeting.

Thank you.
C. Peter R. Gossels
Moderator of the Town of Wayland