I have been a member of Westbrook’s Prides Corner Congregational Church for 10 years. During Sunday’s service, one of the hymns played was “God of Grace and God of Glory.” In 1930, the inspirational lyrics of this hymn were written by “positive thinker” the Rev. Harry Emerson Fosdick.
Fosdick was born in Buffalo, New York, in 1878 and was ordained as a Baptist minister in 1903. In 1930, Fosdick became the founding pastor of Manhattan’s Riverside Church. Fosdick was regarded by his peers and his faithful as a positive thinker for his values and for his work opposing racism and injustice, and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. honored him by describing him as “the greatest preacher of the 20th century.”
An online definition of “positive thinking” describes the process of creating thoughts that create and transform energy into reality. This definition of positive thinking accurately describes Westbrook Mayoral candidate Phil Spiller Jr.
No matter the responsibility or the task that he undertakes, Phil always gives it his 110%. Phil has an infectious “can-do” attitude due to his upbringing, his experiences and the fact that he truly cares about the city of Westbrook and its people. Transforming energy into reality is evidenced by Phil’s commitment to promoting new business ventures in Westbrook, his environmental consciousness and his dedication to the youth/teenagers of Westbrook.
In the early part of the 20th century, Reverend Fosdick was a community leader who, through his positive thinking, transformed energy into reality. In the early part of this 21st century, we too have a positive thinker in our midst, who will transform energy into reality. That positive thinker is Phil Spiller Jr.
On Election Day, Nov. 5, please join me and the citizens of Westbrook in electing positive thinker Phil Spiller Jr. as our next mayor.
Hank McCarvel
Westbrook
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
