SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
December 18, 2015
Sullivan’s
Salvos 12/22/15
In this edition:
*Merry Christmas!
*Congratulations, Lisa!
*Holiday Office Schedule
*Serving As Chair
*Salvos Salutes Next Week!
*Hawkeye Football
*Did You Know?
*Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas to those of you who
celebrate it. I hope you all have a safe and happy holiday!
*Congratulations, Lisa!
The
Johnson County Democratic Party has selected its nominee for the January 19
Special Supervisor Election.
Lisa
Green Douglass of rural North Liberty won the nomination at a special
Democratic Party County Convention on December 16. Green Douglass has been
involved in Democratic Party politics for a long time, serving 14 years on the
Party’s Central Committee. Professionally, Lisa is a former Spanish professor who
now teaches cultural competency to public safety workers, such as law
enforcement, EMT, jails, etc. Lisa is the mother of five children, including
triplets! As a result, she has been very involved as a volunteer in the Clear
Creek Amana School District. Lisa has also volunteered as an interpreter at the
Center for Worker Justice.
I
have known Lisa for quite some time; as a matter of fact, she received a Salvos
Salute way back in 2006! At the time, Lisa was serving as Chair of the Clear
Creek Amana drive toward a new high school, and the State of Iowa was cutting
Johnson County a deal on local option sales taxes for schools. Lisa got the
Salvos Salute for her efforts to make the LOST less regressive.
That
is the type of effort I really respect… it is easy to be against something. It
is much more difficult to attempt to negotiate a solution that makes things
better. Lisa has proven that she is willing to roll up her sleeves and work
toward a solution.
I
wholeheartedly endorse Lisa Green Douglass for the office of Johnson County
Supervisor! I hope she will have your support, too!
*Holiday Office Schedule
A
quick note on the Johnson County schedule for the holidays – administrative
offices will be open on Thursday, December 24 (Christmas Eve), but then closed
on Friday the 25th (Christmas).
Offices
will be open on Thursday, December 31 (New Year’s Eve), closed Friday, January
1st (New Year’s Day), and open again on Monday, January 4th.
As
always, the Sheriff’s Office, 911 dispatch, Medical Examiner’s Office, and
Ambulance service will be running 24/7/365.
*Serving As Chair
The Johnson County Board of Supervisors has a tradition of
rotating the position of Board Chair. Each year, a different member of the
Board takes over at the first meeting of the year.
Though
it is basically a formality, the Board still votes to select its leader. There
have been a couple notable instances when the “rotation” did not happen. Dick
Myers and Joe Bolkcom, who both went on to serve notable careers in higher
office, were both passed over by their peers.
In
some counties, the Chair rotates amongst the political party in charge. In Polk
County, for example, the three Democrats rotate the role of Chair, effectively
shutting out the GOP. In Muscatine County, the GOP used to do the same thing to
Democratic Supervisors. In other counties, one individual has held the role of
Chair for decades. So there is no set method other than holding the election.
Personally,
I do not see any reason to shut anyone out. While it can get cumbersome, we
have always operated on the premise that three members (a majority) of the
Board can put anything they wish on the agenda, even over the objection of the
Chair.
Additionally,
individual Board members can impact the agenda without being Chair. I am proud
of the fact that at my suggestion, agendas were changed to allow public
discussion at both the beginning and end of each meeting. When I first started,
public discussion was only at the end of the agenda. So if you showed up for a
5:30 PM meeting, you might not get to raise your issue until 9 PM. That was not
friendly toward the public. But when I brought it up, others were happy to
oblige.
To
me, the biggest job of the Chair is ensuring that meetings run smoothly. The
public deserves efficiency and effectiveness. A well-run meeting can also save
hours of staff time – and that means money!
I
am in line to serve as the Chair for 2016. I am looking forward to serving in
that capacity, and I am happy to take your suggestions for improving Board
meetings.
*Salvos Salutes Next Week!
We live in a GREAT county! Why? Because of the great people that
live here! Unfortunately, we rarely do enough to acknowledge these wonderful
people and the wonderful things they do.
That
is why I really look forward to Salvos Salutes. It provides an opportunity to
mention just a few of these cool people and the good things they do. I hope you
look forward to it as well!
*Hawkeye Football
As
you may know, I am a huge Hawkeye fan. I try not to write much about it,
however, since you can find plenty of things written about Hawkeye athletics.
I
am going to make an exception today, however, as I think there is a lot we can
learn from this record-setting Hawkeye football season.
I
do not know Coach Ferentz, though I do know his wife Mary. From the perspective
of a big fan who admittedly does not know him personally, he has always struck
me as a very decent, honest, stand-up guy. Not flashy, no bragging, no big ego.
He has always seemed like the kind of coach you would want your son to have.
Despite
all those positive traits, the team’s struggles in 2014 wore on me and many
other Hawkeye fans. While I never wanted to see Coach Ferentz fired, I felt as
though the Hawks really needed to change some things.
And
you know what? Coach Ferentz did just that! He changed several things!
Why
is that such a big deal? Because when push comes to shove, we rarely look at
ourselves critically. Even when we do look at ourselves critically, we are very
unlikely to make changes.
I
think this is even more rare among people who have risen to a certain echelon
or experienced a certain level of success. We have a tendency to get insular,
quit listening, and decide we know best.
I
am very impressed by the willingness of Coach Ferentz to continue to listen and
learn. I am going to try to use him as an example, and see where I can change
things for the better.
*DID YOU KNOW?
Iowa’s 16-13 loss to Michigan State was the first game all season in
which Iowa trailed in the fourth quarter!
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
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As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 2:39 PM
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