Below is the statement Adrienne prepared for the Easton Courier, which recently notified us they will not be running candidate statements this year as they had originally planned. Here Adrienne responds to questions originally posed by the Courier about challenges facing Easton and priorities for local government.

One challenge relates to zoning. As longtime local farmers retire, changing land use is a major concern for most in a town that doesn’t have the infrastructure or services to support

high-density housing that developers seek to build by invoking affordable housing law.

I intend to continue the work my running mate Nick D’Addario and David Bindelglass have done in cooperation with the Aspetuck Land Trust and the state to preserve as much open space in Easton as possible and to continue protecting zoning. I’m proud to have preserved Greiser’s as an example of how pre-existing non-conforming commercial entities could better serve our community and negate the need for changing zoning to bring in new business.

I look forward to ensuring our constituents’ values come to bear on town zoning

regulations and enforcement and that rules are clarified for property owners and buyers to

avoid abuse or misinterpretation.

Another challenge is quality of life here. Few people are aware that nearly 10 percent of

Easton’s population already faces food insecurity. Now, with uncertain times ahead, especially for our senior citizens and others who rely on the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, or Medicare for healthcare, it’s crucial that members of our community be able to come together to support one another. Our town leaders must cooperate with our representatives in Hartford and Washington to find solutions for our citizens. I’ve been impressed and reassured by the support Nick and I get from Connecticut’s state and federal Democratic leaders, and I look forward to working with them to solve economic problems Eastonites will face in coming years.

After living in Easton for 8 years, I invested my own savings to fill the gap I saw for a community gathering spot. In the 7 years I’ve run Greiser’s, I’ve worked successfully with and gained the respect of officials and employees in our town government and on our volunteer commissions, the Fire Marshall, the Aspetuck Health Department, the Connecticut Liquor Control Department, and former elected officials from all parties. Town Republicans invited me in 2019 to run for their seat on the Library Board, where I’ve since enjoyed working with a bipartisan group that rarely disagreed. This year I was asked by the Democratic candidate for First Selectman to be his running mate, in part because he saw me as a unifier.

 I work hard, I get along with people, I have a strong sense of social justice, and I am dedicated to serving our town.

The “Cupboard of Directors” at Greiser’s, where more than 130 customers keep their personal coffee mugs, demonstrates how our business has brought people together in town. Neighbors transcend their political differences here to engage in friendly chats about family, children, work, and hobbies as well as serious and enlightening conversations about the state of our town and the world. I believe the world needs more of this, and I’m proud to have created a space for it in Easton. In a nutshell: I work hard, I get along with people, I have a strong sense of social justice, and I am dedicated to serving our town.

About Adrienne

Adrienne Burke is the owner of Greiser’s Coffee & Market, a beloved Easton hub that has

employed nearly 50 local students and residents since opening in late 2018. In 2020, she and

her team supported homebound customers through the COVID pandemic by offering online

grocery shopping and deliveries. In 2024 she was honored with the first Robert Lessler

Citizenship Award for outstanding service to the town of Easton and awarded a $10,000 WBDC grant to purchase new kitchen equipment for Greiser’s.

As Treasurer for the Easton Library Board of Trustees from 2019–2025, she oversaw the

investment of over $1 million in funds earmarked for the library building expansion.

Before leasing and updating Easton’s oldest general store, Adrienne spent 25 years as a

magazine editor leading teams of science journalists. She was the Executive Editor at the New York Academy of Sciences, Founding Editor of Genome Technology magazine and Editorial Director of GenomeWeb (acquired by Crain Communications), Chief Editor for the Yale School of Engineering magazine, and lead writer and editor for Yahoo Small Business.

She is coauthor of a business book, Let’s Be Clear: 6 Disciplines of Focused Management Pros. Among several awards for writing, she has won three Connecticut Press Club first prizes for articles on science and business.

Born and raised in the Philadelphia area, Adrienne has lived in Boston, Oregon, Minneapolis,

India, Taiwan, and NYC. She has lived with her husband, Jeff Foster, in Easton since 2010. It’s the longest she has lived anywhere.