It’s About the People
When I first met John Lant several years ago there was something familiar and comfortable about him right from the start that I couldn’t quite put my finger on at first.
I needed a car and so one Saturday morning I pulled into Lant’s Auto and decided to see what was on his lot. John met me outside as I was looking over his vehicles and introduced himself. He invited me into his office to chat and then, surprisingly, he began to ask me about me! Where I lived, how long I’d been in Wilton, my family, just an easy and very friendly conversation having nothing to do with making a sale - but rather getting to know me as a person and a neighbor.
As we talked at length about everything but cars, John glanced at me over his spectacles from behind his desk and suddenly it hit me why this friendly down-to-earth guy seemed so familiar to me.
As a teenager my next door neighbor owned a gas station and as I needed summer work he hired me on as a gas jockey. This was back in the day of full service gas stations when you washed the windshield and checked the oil on every fill-up. My neighbor’s name was Mark Burnham but everybody who knew him just called him ‘Dad’. ‘Dad’ was the kind of business owner who if you needed help he would go out of his way to get you on your way.
Several times I saw him eat the cost of a couple gallons of gas, or make a tire repair without charge, usually to a young kid in a jam without any money. ‘Dad’, just like John Lant, was a plain speaking man. No embellishing the facts, no flowery talk – just right from the hip, the way it is, - period.
Yes, John did sell me a car that day, and another one several years after that. He also gave me something I never expected to find and couldn’t buy on his car lot. He gave me a friendship that I depend on and trust. I believe John when he says, “It’s about the people” and you can too!
I’m voting for John Lant for Town Supervisor because I know John’s generous heart is right here with the people and the Town of Wilton. Ray Farina Gansevoort