Being one of the only editors of the community blog leaves me in the awkward situation of having to write about myself. Most articles are written in the third person, but for this time I'll write it as it happened yesterday.
On September 25 I spoke to Mr. Kopff's Participation in Government class, made up of mainly 11th and 12th graders. I had taken the course myself, back in the day, and was happy to share my insights with his students. While there I discussed the responsibilities of being Mayor, especially trying to tie up many issues stemming from the flood or projects that should have been done years ago. On top of this, I talked about the process of becoming Mayor and why it's worth it. To see visible improvements just a year after Irene and knowing that the community is coming back strong makes the job all the better.
One thing that I wanted to impart was that this was a job open for anyone with a commitment to the community. You cannot make a difference here without hard work and stubborn desire to make Middleburgh better. I challenged the students to find one thing to make Middleburgh a better place to live. As all of the 1,500 people of the community continued the great work of rebuilding, we can provide the opportunity for the next generation.
