Letter to the Editor from Thomas Tilley

Oil-delivery-person for the Common Sense Farm in Cambridge, NY

10 April, 2001

My name is Tom. I deliver oil up in Cambridge at Common Sense Farm. The first time that I went up there I could not believe the place, just from driving off the road into the driveway you could almost feel the peace. 

All the stories that the media is throwing around are all one-sided. I can't understand why the state can't leave well enough alone. I'm thinking it's because you separate yourselves from them … 

I talked with a gentleman up there. I can't remember his name, but he gave me a booklet to read and he told me to bring my wife up to check the place out and I never got the time to do it. I wish I did. 

I know you guys are all on the level. I wish there was something that I could do for you. Please keep the faith and I wish you all the best of luck and I'll see you around.

Thomas Tilley
Troy, NY

When asked whether he would permit us to publish his letter on our Web site, this was Thomas Tilley's response:

11 April, 2001

Absolutely. I would be honored to represent you and what you stand for. I'll even go one step further by saying if needed I'm willing to be a character witness to what I saw of the place. I'm a ordinary guy that drives a truck for [a local fuel company] with three children of my own. I had total access to the whole facility and saw nothing but a giant happy family that most people would absolutely kill to have.

This world is in big trouble — people work [very hard] for little money waiting for the big break to come along that will probably never come, others are sitting in offices making 6-digit figures trying their best to knock down the little guys to bring themselves even higher, and every day I am scared to death that one of my children are going to be shot to death in school by another 8-year-old. When will all the fear end?

The local radio station [...] was talking about the story and they were not totally against you, they just wanted to know the real story and they were making comments to be funny, for ratings of course, and as I was just about to change the station they started taking calls on the story, and a lot of the calls were very positive basically saying that they have seen you and the tan bus you travel in and have seen you handing out flyers. One caller said that there were a group of children in a circle dancing and laughing and one child was playing a flute. You don't hear about real live happy families anymore. [...]  I'm not as religious as I wish I was, but I thank God for a family as special as yours.