Yours truly with our new police chief, Stacey Graves. I have been trying to gauge what I think of her since her promotion a few months ago, and when I found there would be a welcome reception for her close by, I decided that would be an excellent opportunity to maybe make my mind up a little.
Beings that I trend heavily on the introverted side of the spectrum, I loathe such meet and greet functions. To be blunt, I would rather have a tooth pulled then go to a social mixer where I don’t already know at least some people. By the time I convinced myself to go, it was mostly over.
What I remember most about the less than an hour that I was there, however, was not being awkwardly off to the side by myself; debating about how long (or if) I would stay as I had apparently missed whatever remarks or comments she was planning on making that night. Nor was it trying to look as if I was totally comfortable standing around with a handful of other strangers waiting for my moment to speak a few words to her.
Nope. What stands out the most in my memory banks was her gracious good humor when I asked for a photo. She even worked the phone herself to make sure we got a good “twosie” together.
Cleaning the proverbial house after the last police chief is likely to be a huge undertaking, and the jury is still out if she is up to the task; there has already been at least one missed opportunity to start rebuilding trust.
But….well……here’s to hoping that a lot of people, myself included, are pleasantly surprised.
It is so important for us voters that we are aware of our local elections and check out the candidates and where they stand. It is part of our job as citizens to keep our communities strong.
ReplyDeleteYes, like the saying goes: if you're not at the table you could end up on the menu.
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