Two candidates are up for election on Nov. 7 for a spot on Upper Southampton Township’s audit committee
By Samantha Bambino
The Times
On Nov. 7, polls will open to allow the Upper Southampton community to decide who will hold the third seat on the township’s committee of auditors — Adam Corson-Finnerty for the Democrats, or incumbent Gerald Crandley for the Republicans.
This may be Corson-Finnerty’s first time campaigning for any sort of township position, but he’s no stranger to the world of budgeting. After earning two master’s degrees, one in social work from Bryn Mawr College and the other in American history from the University of Pennsylvania, the Upper Southampton resident began a lifelong journey in nonprofit management.
Throughout his vast career, Corson-Finnerty’s experience includes serving as the director of development and external affairs at the University of Pennsylvania’s library, joining the retirement committee at Foulkeways as a board member, and most recently working as an executive director and development consultant at Energy Coordinating Agency. Here, he was responsible for working directly with auditing firms. In addition, he opened a Quaker conference center in New York with his wife, for which he fundraises and manages the budget.
“I’m quite familiar with being audited as well as directing an audit committee,” he said.
Though he’s been enjoying retirement and taking care of his 2-year-old grandchild for the past seven months, Corson-Finnerty still wants to put his years of experience to use for the good of his community. By running the Quaker center and serving on a number of smaller auditing committees over the years, he said he understands what it takes to oversee yearly audits, and takes great pride in the process.
“Whether it’s a government, nonprofit or for-profit organization, auditing is incredibly important,” he said.
According to Corson-Finnerty, an auditing committee is basically an independent group chosen to “take a look at the books.” While he said they have to ask hard questions sometimes while looking at sensitive documents like bank statements and pay histories, he explained how the committee’s work keeps everything in check.
“Trust but verify,” he said. “It’s the double-checking that keeps everything honest.”
Reflecting on the past several years, he said how the current auditing committee has been doing a good job. However, he explained how it has been primarily Republican-led, and he would like to see another party represented as a “double-check” on government.
“It’s an important position to keep everything transparent to reassure voters everything is being done properly,” he said.
So why vote for Corson-Finnerty?
In addition to his years of experience with budgeting and financial management, he explained how he would bring an “independent perspective” to the auditing committee and its process.
As for his Republican opponent, Crandley is the only incumbent on the committee coming to the end of his six-year term. The Upper Southampton Times was unsuccessful in its attempts to reach Crandley for comment. ••
Polling places are subject to change. Polls are open Election Day 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
To find your polling place, visit buckscounty.org/government/CommunityServices/BoardofElections/PollingPlaces.
Samantha Bambino can be reached at [email protected]
