Archive: Opinions

I was excited to learn this week that Dick Costello, one of my instructors and coaches at Cornell, is running in this fall’s election to be Lansing Town Judge and while I am not in the area, I want to share my views of Dick and why there is no question that he would be not only an outstanding choice for each and every Lansing voter, but the best choice. I had the pleasure of working with Dick for 6 years while I was in the Lansing area and he taught me more than how to play golf.

We’ve stayed close since I graduated and have seen each other many times over the years. He and I spoke and speak often and at length about things that go beyond golf but in many ways are showcased by golf. Some voters might question what does a golf have to do with being a “good” Town Judge. Golf is the only sport where you are your own referee. It’s up to you whether you will play the game with honesty and principle and “play the ball as it lies” and call penalties on yourself or if you let it go to get an edge. Dick always “plays the ball as it lies”.

Through 26 years as a golf pro, instructor and coach at Cornell’s Robert Trent Jones golf course, he taught all of his students and players the importance of integrity on and off the course, making and keeping commitments, of making hard decisions that hurt but that are the right thing to do for the future. As skillful administrator of University assets, both financial and tangible, he proved over those 26 years that he understood how to get the maximum value from the resources he was given. As a member and representative of the University, he showed over and over the interpersonal skills to work effectively with administration, alumni, and business stakeholders to help move the school forward.

Dick honed these skills through his time serving the United States in the U.S. Navy where he not only earned the highest level of security clearance for the tasks he was assigned but was ultimate assigned to serve on the USS Northhampton, the floating White House for the President of the United States, during which he was required to serve and support the activities of the President and his administration.

All of these skills and experiences create the foundation for integrity, judgement and independence that we need in our judges at all levels of the country, but especially at the local level where they impact our lives and families on a personal level. I will conclude with a portion of the sentence that I began this letter. There is no question that he would be not only an outstanding choice for each and every Lansing voter, but the best choice.

Bob Bocchino
Sewickely, PA

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