Staff Writer
LIMESTONE — The citizen of Limestone will decide who will be elected to the Limestone Board of Selectpeople on Tuesday, June 8. The vote will be held at the Limestone Municipal Building from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. There are two positions currently available, one three-year term and another term with two remaining years that was vacated by former selectperson Mary Morin.
Mark A. Fisher, 42, decided to run for Selectperson in order to help improve the quality of the town. A Democratic blue collar worker, he grew up working in sawmills and paper mills; both of his parents were dairy farmers. If elected, Fisher’s primary goal is “to bring businesses to our town and to help revitalize our community,” he said. Fisher is running for a three-year term.
Wendell A. Ricker, 68, decided to run for office because he cares about he town and wants to do his part in making it a better place for everyone. Now retired, he served in the Army for 10 years receiving the title of Sgt. 1st Class, owned a construction business and owned a trucking business from 1976 to 2002. An Independent, Ricker has also held a leadership role as the commander of the American Legion Post 179 in South China, Maine. His primary goal upon election will be “To help with economic development and growth and bring more people to the town.” Ricker is running for a two-year term.
Jimmy M. Pelletier believes that these economic times have caused a lot of strife throughout the Limestone community, state and federal government. “I grew up in Limestone and have seen many changes to our community, many of which have been adverse for our stability,” he said.
Pelletier has been employed at the Maine Military Authority as a mechanic since 2004 but prior to that, he served in the U.S. Air Force for four years, worked as an electrician at Bath Iron Works for three years, worked at McCain Foods for three years as a forklift operator, and for five years as an over-the-road truck driver.
Aside from his career endeavors, Pelletier has been a Limestone School Board (LSB) member from 1997 to ’01 serving also as chairman of the LSB for one year during that time; he was the commander of the American Legion Obar-Phair Post from 1998 until 2000 and is currently a member of the Knights of Columbus. He has also been a firefighter/EMT with the Limestone Fire Department for the past three years. His primary goal if elected is “to promote teamwork amongst our boards, committees and various organizations to promote interest and growth in our community that is badly needed.” Pelletier is running for a three-year term.
Thomas A. Devoe has previously served on the Limestone Board of Selectpeople for nine consecutive years in the ‘90s, but he decided to run again to give the voters of Limestone a broader choice than what they’ve been getting.
Devoe is a self-employed potato farmer and has been for the past 36 years during which he has also served in the Maine Army National Guard for 31 years; he also served in the Army for two years. The highest rank he achieved was Sgt. 1st Class, though he is now retired from military service.
Devoe has lived in Limestone all his life and has served in various leadership roles; aside from being a selectperson, he also served one term on the planning board, has been a member of the budget committee for about five years total, he was a member of the tablestock committee for the Maine Potato Board and served on the executive council of the MPB. He is also the chairman of the building committee for the Frost Memorial Library. If elected, his primary goal is “to see that the citizens of Limestone get the full value for every tax dollar that is received by the town.” Devoe is running for a two-year term.
Jesse Philbrick is running for a three-year term. As he has been out of town on business, the Aroostook Republican was unable to contact Philbrick for a candidate profile as of Tuesday afternoon.
