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07/20/2011 12:00 AMWhen Democratic Selectman Bill Gladstone phoned late Monday morning, he had just finished the Chicago Yacht Club's Race to Mackinac Island, a 333-mile freshwater race from just off Chicago's Navy Pier to Mackinac Island, Michigan. Sailing is what Gladstone does, and his profession has taken him around the world. Over the last two years, it has also kept him from participating as fully as he would like on the Board of Selectmen.
This week Gladstone said he will not seek re-election.
"Reluctantly, I am not running again. My time on the board has been fun, rewarding, and a wonderful learning experience," he said, but his work schedule is pulling him away. "I talk about sailing. I teach sailing. I have always traveled some, but that would be largely on weekends. Now my work is involving more and more travel and longer trips. Previously, I had the time to do the job. Now I can't, and that is not really fair to the Board of Selectmen or the town."
It has been a difficult decision. He has served three terms as selectman and has found the position rewarding and fascinating.
"I had the privilege to learn from experts. So much of the position is knowing who to ask and how to tap into expertise. That could be town staff, other elected officials, or volunteers on boards or commissions.and I learned so much, whether it was pensions or legal issues, or labor negotiations or energy, the whole experience is fascinating," he said.
Running for selectman, or any elected office, was not his idea.
"Six years ago I returned from a three-week business trip and was confronted with a cadre of flatterers. There were eight of them and they wanted me to run for this office and they massaged my ego, and I decided to do it. It would never have occurred to me on my own," Gladstone recalled, laughing.
When he has another opportunity, he said, he will "do something else" in local government-"I will not completely disappear."
In the meantime, however, he will be traveling the world. Where has he been in the last two years? Here's just a sampling: Malaysia, Croatia, Spain, St. Tropez, Israel, Ireland, and recently, 15 locations in the U.S. and Canada. In September he heads to Mumbai, Thailand, and Singapore.