Board of Finance candidate Paul R. Sutherland: Just what the board needs

Written by Paul R. Sutherland
Thursday, 13 October 2011 06:39

I am a candidate for the Board of Finance.

I grew up in Wilton, and then spent 25 years in Florida working in corporate finance. I returned in 2001 with my family to live in Ridgefield. My daughter and my two sons are all graduates of Ridgefield High School. For the past four years, I have been an active member and secretary of the Ridgefield Board of Education.

I have been a member of the Ridgefield Democratic Town Committee for several years and I am running as a Democrat. However, I like most Americans, am appalled at the lack of civility and cooperation that marks politics at the state and Federal level. I believe Ridgefield should be different. While on the Democratic Town Committee, I have coordinated a number of non-partisan public policy forums.

For most of my career I worked for Florida Power & Light Company and its parent, FPL Group in various positions, including assistant treasurer of both companies and director of finance for the Energy Marketing & Trading Division of FPL. In 1989, FPL was the first American company to win the prestigious Deming Prize for quality management. Over the past 10 years I have worked in various capacities, including managing director, of a small Wall Street firm, Saber Partners, LLC, finding ways to help public entities finance at the lowest possible cost.

I have an engineering degree from Cornell University and a master of business administration degree from the University of Chicago. I spent two years in the Peace Corps in Brazil, and I have a particular appreciation for the pressures on our society in this age of globalization.

I believe that my combination of experience in business and town governance, together with my commitment to bi-partisanship, is just what the Board of Finance needs.