Joan Page Nassivera: Deerfielders, vote for Tim Hilchey

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Published: 04-29-2025 11:25 AM

I’ve known Tim Hilchey for more than three decades. He was a respected colleague at The New York Times and as years passed, became a treasured friend — two descriptions I don’t use all that often.

I don’t live in Deerfield so I can’t vote for Tim, though if I could, I certainly would. I think anyone who is a Deerfield resident should vote for him, too. Here are my reasons.

Tim Hilchey is a Renaissance man, a polymath out of Worcester Polytech. He is scarily smart, his intelligence stemming from a deep curiosity about damn near everything and everyone he meets. He listens and he studies, two attributes that seem in short supply these days.

Tim is a problem solver. He can design; he can calculate; he can build — physical structures and coalitions. I chose Tim to be on my staff at The Times, which brings to mind a cliche, but one that is so true of him: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” We faced several tough challenges there, but Tim never faltered, and we prevailed because of his ability to understand all the dimensions of a problem and then help develop the best possible solution.

Perhaps Tim’s finest qualities are his emotional intelligence, his humility and his empathy. They are best reflected in his longtime relationship with Pat Ryan, another multi-talented human who is Tim’s partner in every sense of the word.

In this election, you Deerfield residents have the opportunity to continue to benefit, so please vote to return Tim to the Selectboard for another term. You will not regret it.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If I did not believe in Tim’s candidacy, I would not have made the effort to write it.

Joan Page Nassivera

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