Ward: Maricopa — the good, the bad and the ugly

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I don’t know about the rest of the Maricopa residents, but I’ve had quite a week. In between working, being a pastor, a dad and husband, coordinating Victim Services and enjoying a gorgeous Monday evening sunset, I have had the ‘pleasure’ of reading about all the ‘horrors’ happening in our fair city.

There have been so many statements made about so many people and so many circumstances that my head is spinning. When it finally came to a stop, one clear thought raced through my pea-sized brain. We are a family. Granted, quite the dysfunctional one at this point, but a family nonetheless.

Think about it. We argue like brothers and sisters. We have strange uncles and aunts who say the strangest, funniest and sometimes the most outrageous things. We have cousins that we don’t quite understand. We have grumpy grandpas who yell at the kids to “Get off my lawn!” We yell, fight, scrap it out and, at the end, of the day we are still family.

In my family we lived through the good, the bad and the ugly. I bet in some of your families you just had bad and ugly. I know that firsthand as a chaplain working with PCSO, and I might have been the one showing up with the deputies on your doorstep. But it doesn’t have to be that way in Maricopa. This is a great community. We have a choice and a voice.

I personally have met and talked with most of the City Council. I’m the Chairman of the Parks, Recreation and Libraries committee and have worked with Marty McDonald, Scott Bartle, and some great citizens of Maricopa over the years I’ve called this city home.

I spent a stormy Salsa Festival picking up trash with Mayor Anderson, who was concerned that it not blow into people’s yards and pools around Pacana Park. No one was around to take pictures of him or for him to ask for their votes. While this doesn’t make him a great mayor, I think it shows a bit about character. I think that’s true about most of the city officials and workers.

When someone needed help, the forum members responded with generosity unrivaled by any community. I’ve lived in many. Thanks to you, a detention officer’s family will have clothes for school, school supplies and food – all from a single posting in the Community Section. Thank you for your concern and help for Sgt. Cannon. There’s no doubt that many prayers and well wishes were extended from these electronic pages.

Personally I tend to err on the side of being gracious. But that doesn’t excuse bad behavior, poor communication, conflicts of interest and many of the other things we see happening. But, like any family, we can grow stronger and smarter through this.

Mr. Mayor and City Council: LEARN from how things went wrong and make them better. If not, we’ll vote you out and find someone who can do the job. It won’t be personal, at least not on my part.

85239 forum members: use the power of collective information to ask for higher accountability and increased vigilance, yet don’t degenerate into a mass of rumor and innuendo.

Will some of you disagree with my take on this? Absolutely. You might think I’m simplistic and too willing to overlook the problems. Not a chance. Instead, let’s confront the problems, come up with solutions and live passionately in this great community.

I’m here for the long run, how about the rest of my Maricopa family?

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