I write to ask my Ward 3 neighbors to join me in supporting Laurie Loisel for City Council on Nov. 4. I first met Laurie approximately 30 years ago. At the time, I was prosecuting cases for the district attorney and Laurie was covering the Gazette’s “courthouse beat.” At the end of each court session, she would track me down to follow up on what she witnessed in the courtroom in preparation for the next day’s story.

Laurie was always well prepared for these interviews because she was a good listener. She would not have been a successful courtroom reporter if she wasn’t. She had a knack for always asking the right questions, often the really tough questions. What really stood out for me during these exchanges however, was that Laurie, while fearless, was always civil and professional in pursuit of her story.

A few years later, in 1999, I was appointed to the bench and Laurie continued her courtroom work for the Gazette, now covering cases over which I presided. Her work was always fact-based, accurate and fair. Later, in our rather adjacent careers, I served as First Justice of the Northampton District Court beginning in 2010 until my retirement in late 2018. Much of this period coincided with Laurie’s noteworthy service for District Attorney David Sullivan as his director of community outreach. This is a wide-ranging and highly impactful program, one that serves many among us every day, and for which Laurie, in characteristic fashion, deflects all credit.

So I was thrilled to recently learn that Laurie was running for City Council. She has quietly immersed herself in our community for decades and in myriad important ways. She is a model citizen, a trusted and caring neighbor, and a proven problem-solver who will dig into the issues and work to identify solutions, not for attention but because she cares.

Now more than ever, our political climate demands that the best of us step forward to serve. As Laurie humbly seeks to answer that call, please join me in supporting her on Nov. 4.

Mike Goggins

Northampton