Letter of Endorsement for Lara Schlachter

TAPinto West Essex

By Jenifer Rainone

It is with conviction and pleasure that I write on behalf of Lara Janine Schlachter, candidate for North Caldwell Town Council. Lara, her husband, Ivan, and her two children, Addison and Weston, are pillars of our community in every way imaginable. My daughter, Carly, is the same age as Addison and has shared classes and activities with her for years, my son shares a grade level and classes with Weston, and, most importantly, Lara is Carly’s piano instructor. I have gotten to know the Schlachters, and Lara, specifically, on so many levels: as a fellow community member, a fellow mother, a beloved piano teacher, a class mom, a gifted artist, a fierce child advocate, and a dear friend.  In all areas, she has unfailingly impressed me with her characteristic nurturing demeanor, intelligent discourse, and, most of all, consistent willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty for our children and our beautiful town.

If you have ever been to one of the piano recitals hosted at her home, or one of the many at our beloved Notre Dame Church, you know that Lara doesn’t do anything halfway. From perfect programs, well-organized and themed song choices, and impassioned performances, I have witnessed Lara take the rough-around-the-edges piano student and turn them into a polished pianist. She can pull together an event that could rival Carnegie Hall with little time and even less resources. She even kept her communal piano school performing during COVID, conducting distanced outdoor lessons and recitals, stringently wiping down each key of the piano between students. This care and attention to detail is at Lara’s truest core, and it is attention our town so desperately deserves. Even more impressive is her patient, kind, angelic demeanor. As a public educator of 22 years, I can say Lara is as gifted an instructor as any I have ever seen; her giving nature, clarity of expression, and endless patience render her born for public service, where she can communicate, reach out, educate, and channel all of her amazing passions into an endeavor that will so greatly benefit each and every citizen of North Caldwell.

I could have lived anywhere, but I chose North Caldwell, as my father was raised here, on Maple Drive, and his mother was a secretary at the town hall. Although I, myself did not grow up here, the North Caldwell legacy was in me. Since divorcing recently, I could have moved anywhere else for a “fresh start,” but after living here, I already knew that there simply is nowhere else to go that could rival our special little gem of a town. Lara Schlachter as council member is the absolute best choice to ensure our community the care, time, dedication, attention to detail, and diligence we all deserve. I would back her endlessly, and am available if you so desire any further information on this amazing candidate. Thank you for your time and consideration in reading this impassioned and sincere endorsement.

Sincerely,

Jenifer P. Hecht Rainone