To Whom It May Concern:
       My name is Ethan Shaw. I am a former Cross Country and Track Athlete for Falmouth High School, and I am now a Cross Country and Track Athlete at Dartmouth College. I am writing you concerning the proposal to, once again, prohibit Mainers from attending the New England Championships. From the information I have found, I see that the main reasoning behind this is to save money for the individual schools that would otherwise have to pay to send their students. In these tough times I understand that you are trying to keep schools and people afloat, while also trying not to favor the more affluent communities, but what I can promise you is that the New England Championships is an invaluable experience. I have been through the disappointment of narrowly missing these championships, but that was nothing compared to the disappointment I felt when I realized that our team would have been going had an unnecessary rule not been in place. If this rule passes, this disappointment will now be felt by every athlete that would have made it, both individually and as a team, and every cross country, track, swimming, golf, wrestling, and tennis athlete to have ever competed in Maine. We have had some unbelievable athletes from our state in these sports, and to deprive the next generation's great athletes of the opportunity to compete at a higher level is nothing but disgraceful. I have no doubt in my mind that the New England Championships in Track and Cross Country were a major factor in me both competing, and learning, where, and at the level, I am at today. I truly hope you vote against this bill that will take away this opportunity for scholar athletes across Maine and I thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Ethan Shaw