As some of you may be aware my son,Kevin,ran for and succeeded in getting elected as a Town Commissioner.
Naturally I'm proud of this accomplishment and will gladly accept the credit ! LOL He had served previously, but as an appointed official, so being elected was an important milestone for him. His term is for four years.
This was particularly satisfying to me because we are " from away." That is to say none of my family was born here. I was born in New York, one of them damn Yankees,and my wife and children were born in Maryland. They were not born on the eastern shore though, so that makes them." from away."
We have lived here in Greensboro for twenty some years. Both boys graduated high school here. Kevin has remained in town and his brother Ken lives in upstate New York. Even having lived here that long we are "from away." We are making inroads however. Kevin in politics and I with joining the historical society. This being " from away " is something I have addressed in the past. It is a constant theme in the background. I have never encountered any open hostility but have sensed the clannishness of locals at gatherings. It is only natural that it should be so.
Kevin can have a direct effect upon the town in general. With only a three person council the responsibility is great and the decisions many and varied. We had a voter turnout of 172. That was the most in nine years. Greensboro,along with a lot of other towns, enjoyed a growth spurt not too long ago. Some people moved into town limits from outlying areas and some were " from away." The commuter bunch. This group still has a presence even though it was diminished somewhat by the economy. It is my thought that this particular group was the swing votes in the election. The newest residents of the town.
I should explain that the town proper is quite small. Point seven square miles to be exact. You must reside within that area to be eligible to vote in the town election. Many of the older citizens live outside this box. I haven't studied the demographics but I'm willing to bet they are more people " from away " inside the box that out.And that made the difference.
In every small town there is the " good ole boys " network. That's just one of those things. The connotation is that it is a bad thing but that isn't necessarily so. Changes are often hard to accept. Ways of doing things and the status quo. The measure of a towns' ability to grow is effected by this. Greensboro is proving to be progressive in its' thinking while maintaining its' core values. In this most difficult of times leadership must be extra vigilant.
Being " from away " I have watched from the sidelines. I watched as that second stop light was added. I watched as new development took place. I heard the murmurs from the old folks about the town going to hell. I heard the newest residents crowing about the improvements and progress they have made. The locals reluctant to make changes.The, If was good enough for my Father it is good enough for me,attitude.I watched as some of us " from away " voted in favor of change. Whether it is good or bad change is inevitable.
It is always the people that are " from away " that make the changes. I'm quite certain the native Americans thought the white man was" from away." The settlers out west were eventually replaced by people from the east. They were" from away."
And so the cycle continues. Perhaps one day in the future you will hear people say," That Kevin is a good leader and pillar of the community. " I'm equally as certain you will hear another say, " he's "from away" you know !
Naturally I'm proud of this accomplishment and will gladly accept the credit ! LOL He had served previously, but as an appointed official, so being elected was an important milestone for him. His term is for four years.
This was particularly satisfying to me because we are " from away." That is to say none of my family was born here. I was born in New York, one of them damn Yankees,and my wife and children were born in Maryland. They were not born on the eastern shore though, so that makes them." from away."
We have lived here in Greensboro for twenty some years. Both boys graduated high school here. Kevin has remained in town and his brother Ken lives in upstate New York. Even having lived here that long we are "from away." We are making inroads however. Kevin in politics and I with joining the historical society. This being " from away " is something I have addressed in the past. It is a constant theme in the background. I have never encountered any open hostility but have sensed the clannishness of locals at gatherings. It is only natural that it should be so.
Kevin can have a direct effect upon the town in general. With only a three person council the responsibility is great and the decisions many and varied. We had a voter turnout of 172. That was the most in nine years. Greensboro,along with a lot of other towns, enjoyed a growth spurt not too long ago. Some people moved into town limits from outlying areas and some were " from away." The commuter bunch. This group still has a presence even though it was diminished somewhat by the economy. It is my thought that this particular group was the swing votes in the election. The newest residents of the town.
I should explain that the town proper is quite small. Point seven square miles to be exact. You must reside within that area to be eligible to vote in the town election. Many of the older citizens live outside this box. I haven't studied the demographics but I'm willing to bet they are more people " from away " inside the box that out.And that made the difference.
In every small town there is the " good ole boys " network. That's just one of those things. The connotation is that it is a bad thing but that isn't necessarily so. Changes are often hard to accept. Ways of doing things and the status quo. The measure of a towns' ability to grow is effected by this. Greensboro is proving to be progressive in its' thinking while maintaining its' core values. In this most difficult of times leadership must be extra vigilant.
Being " from away " I have watched from the sidelines. I watched as that second stop light was added. I watched as new development took place. I heard the murmurs from the old folks about the town going to hell. I heard the newest residents crowing about the improvements and progress they have made. The locals reluctant to make changes.The, If was good enough for my Father it is good enough for me,attitude.I watched as some of us " from away " voted in favor of change. Whether it is good or bad change is inevitable.
It is always the people that are " from away " that make the changes. I'm quite certain the native Americans thought the white man was" from away." The settlers out west were eventually replaced by people from the east. They were" from away."
And so the cycle continues. Perhaps one day in the future you will hear people say," That Kevin is a good leader and pillar of the community. " I'm equally as certain you will hear another say, " he's "from away" you know !
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