School supporters wave to evening commuters.

More than 30 Portsmouth school supporters gathered at the intersection of East Main and Turnpike Ave this evening, holding signs urging support for the budget referendum and waving to motorists. The rally was aimed at building awareness around the referendum petition and reminding folks about the "Sign and Drive" events Thursday and Friday at Portsmouth High School, where volunteers will be collecting signatures.

People in hundreds of cars driving by honked, waved, and hooted as the school supporters cheered. Even though the event was not aimed at collecting signatures, a couple dozen folks stopped long enough to sign the petition to hold a town-wide election to restore $760K to the school budget.

According to Save Our Schools organizer David Croston, volunteers have picked up about 600 of the required 1,500 signatures from registered Portsmouth voters needed to have a special budget election. He expressed satisfaction with the way the process had been going so far, but urged everyone to turn out for the events at the high school from 6-9am and 4-7pm on Thursday and Friday.

A handful of counter-demonstrators — three, to be exact — set up on East Main in front of Clements Market. Joseph Lorenz, who is listed as Vice-President of Portsmouth Concerned Citizens in their most recent corporate filing, had a sign which read, on three successive lines, "Good Teachers, Good Parents. Not about the $$$"

When approached by this reporter to see if he would sign the petition — given the PCC's oft-stated ideal of putting decisions in the hands of the voters — Lorenz declined. "That wouldn't be true to the bottom line," He said, pointing at the third line of the sign he was holding. Philosophical statement or parapraxis? You decide.

Volunteers will be at Seveney Field tomorrow morning and evening, there will be someone with a clipboard at the David Segal visit tomorrow night, and then, it's all hands on deck for the major push during morning and evening commute times Thursday and Friday at PHS.

With the deadline fast approaching — all forms have to be back to Town Hall by 4:30 on Wednesday, August 11 — I'd like to urge everyone to stop by one of these events.