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The
brighter and lighter
side of Logan County
By
Mike Fak
[MARCH
13, 2001] With
all the press about questionable ethics of charities, it looks like
Logan County has a wonderful humanitarian organization that is not
only honest and altruistic but, of course, receives little or no
press coverage. Let's change that. This April 24, at a 6:30 p.m.
dinner at the Lincoln Christian Church, the Lincoln/Logan Food
Pantry will celebrate another year in existence.
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In
the event you do not know what the Lincoln/Logan Food pantry is or
does, you are not alone. Comprised of 100 county residents, almost all
senior citizens, the food pantry organization collects foodstuffs and
passes them out on a monthly basis to the 350 families in our county
judged by the state of Illinois as needing such basic assistance. This
all-volunteer staff gives of their time and energy for this worthy
cause and should be congratulated for continuing to serve the needs of
our community. What makes this organization even more special is that
the funding for this group comes from 11 countywide banks and 33
churches in our area. In their kindness they have invited me to their
April gathering. I will be sure to thank all of them on behalf of all
of us.
The
100th anniversary of the Hartsburg bank should be
celebrated by all residents in the county, not just those who live in
Hartsburg or deal with this bank. In a day and age where even
small-town banks carry the name of some national conglomerate more
interested in numbers than people, it is gratifying to see that some
financial dinosaurs still roam the earth. Rural America was born on
the backs of small banks in small communities that understood that a
person’s handshake and word carried more value than an attractive
credit application and financial statement. Our county still has a few
such banks among us. Let us hope Hartsburg Bank lasts another century.
So few of what made us great seem to pass the test of time. I am
pleased to add the Hartsburg bank to that small but special list.
[to top of second
column in this commentary]
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The
board of directors of the Lincoln Public Library is not shy about
celebrating a good thing, and that is what the board did Sunday, March
11, with a 10th anniversary get-together for the library’s director,
Richard Sumrall. Richard is not only a fine leader for our library
district but is totally involved in organizations and events
throughout the Logan County area. In a day and age when many of us are
content to gather a paycheck and go home for the day, Richard can be
found everywhere in this community volunteering and assisting wherever
he is needed. Although the celebration was to mark Richard’s 10
years with the library, I considered it a celebration congratulating
the board on being smart enough to hire Sumrall 10 years ago. It was
one of the most judicious decisions a public group has made in Logan
County in decades.
Who
says a politician can’t have a sense of humor. We all know about the
heat put on the Logan County Board regarding the question of at-large
or district voting on board seats. Proponents of districting
continually bring up the anomaly that board member David Hepler lives
right next door to board member Terry Werth. When I asked County Board
Chairman Dick Logan if he had any thoughts on a probable replacement
for board member Beth Davis’ vacancy, he answered quickly, "I
guess I need to find out who lives on the other side of Terry Werth."
Another
quip happened at a recent Buildings and Grounds Committee meeting. The
committee was discussing a bid I had placed before them to strip the
tile floors in the courthouse and to bring a little life back into
their appearance. After the committee decided not to spend any money
on such a project at this time, one in attendance suggested that a
warrant be sworn out for my arrest. Then the sheriff could see that I
do the job under a work release order for no cost at all.
[Mike Fak]
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Reflections
on a mayoral race
By
Mike Fak
[MARCH
7, 2001] Well,
everyone, it appears that Lincoln will have a new mayor at the helm
come next season. Pitching a near shutout, Beth Davis carried 20 of
the 21 precincts in the city. The raw vote count was not as
impressive to me as the fact that Davis drew support from all areas
of the city, showing that Lincolnites had decided it was again time
for a change on who swings the gavel at City Hall meetings.
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The
general election still is before us, but with Kenneth Scott Gray
receiving little outward support from a sleeping Democratic Party,
Davis seems at this time to be a prohibitive favorite to be the second
female mayor in Lincoln's storied history.
The
question will need to be asked if the election of Davis was a pro-Beth
Davis victory or an anti-Ritter mandate. Taking nothing away from
Davis nor laying any blame on Ritter, the norm in this state, as well
as country, seems to show a mentality to continue to vote incumbents
out of office. In a small community such as ours, an incumbent thick
in the decision-making process can, with little effort, eventually
sway voters in a direction away from continuing to support them. A
mayor in Lincoln who makes decisions approved by 90 percent of the
constituents still has caused 10 percent of the vote to be at odds
with them. After four years those 10 percents can add up to a serious
roadblock to being re-elected. Perhaps this is what happened to Joan
Ritter, as it did to John Guzzardo, as it did to Pete Andrews.
Without
judging, I believe it is safe to say that voters are becoming more and
more fickle in whom they vote for. More and more, Americans displeased
with the way things are, are going to vote someone out of office
rather than someone into office. Is this what just occurred in
Lincoln? I will let all of you tell me if that is why you voted for
Davis or Mesner or Fults or Harlow rather than the incumbent.
On
Mayor Ritter's behalf, I believe she stood her guns on many issues
that did not win her any popularity contests. I have told her in
person she was intractable on some of her positions. This noteworthy
trait can be seen as a great strength by those who agreed with her but
was viewed as stubborn and narrow-minded by those who disagreed. I
personally did not agree with all of our mayor's decisions but never
once felt that she did not believe in her heart that she was doing
what was best for the community.
[to top of second
column in this commentary]
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I
know Beth Davis to be a good person and can find no animosity in my
heart to the fact she won the election fair and square. I do have a
problem with Davis’ outlook on the mayoral position as well as the
1,309 of you who voted for her. The mayor of Lincoln can let
department heads run their various agencies with no argument from me,
but what about all the other things a mayor can do for Lincoln?
Seminars, luncheons, meetings during the day when issues regarding the
well-being of Lincoln are discussed will now, for the first time in 12
years, be without the mayor of Lincoln present. What will we do when a
potential business comes to town for a tour and is told so-and-so will
show them around because the mayor is working? For all the great
things Beth will try to do for Lincoln, and I truly believe she also
has our city’s best interests at heart, there are just some things
that can’t be done if a person isn’t there.
Ten
percent of the registered voters either decided that a part-time Beth
Davis is better than a full-time Mayor Ritter or that Lincoln doesn’t
need to have a full-time mayor. I disagree with 1,309 of you. Not
because you voted for Beth but because you feel a mayor in Lincoln
cannot find enough important things to do to fill a 40-hour workweek.
I,
like Beth, have a full-time job as well as several part-time
avocations. Often I find my full-time career causing my part-time
aspirations to suffer. Sometimes it is the other way around, but
always I have had to realize I cannot do all things to the best of my
ability, because of time constraints. I will not be surprised if,
after a few months in office, Beth Davis will also realize that it is
impossible for mere mortals like ourselves to be in two places at the
same time.
Joan
Ritter will go down in history as Lincoln’s first female mayor.
Perhaps Beth Davis will come to the realization it is time for Lincoln
to have another first — the first full-time mayor in our city’s
history.
[Mike Fak]
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