Some columns are easy to write, others difficult. This is one of the difficult sort.
I know I have said I was leaving before, but I rolled back into town like a bad penny. This is different, because I am going to retire and move back home to Florida. In case you missed it, I am an extremely rare creature, a Florida native, born and bred.
A large part of the decision to pull the trigger was the death of my last brother and the realization that it was just we girls now. Another part is my husband’s failing health and the knowledge we are going to need additional support going forward.
There is another leg to this tripod, though. I don’t feel like I am leaving Watonga – and the county – in a lurch. The town is on a good trajectory, with a city manager who knows what he’s about at the helm and a full council seated with members who are devoted to the good of the community. That doesn’t mean they will always be right or make perfect decisions. It means they are willing to look at the options and agree on one.
The new county jail is built. The prison is back open. I never believed we wanted to be known as a detention community, and one day other industries will take over. Until then, the county jail is helping pay its own way and the ICE facility is bringing some muchneeded income to the town.
We have a new wastewater treatment facility, a new drinking water treatment plant. Work is out to bid on the airport terminal. The schools are in top notch condition and the facilities are beautiful. Infrastructure is being addressed a little at a time. The town is no longer kicking the can down the road. The trash situation is getting under control.
It is a new day in Watonga, America.
I don’t believe all the problems are solved. There is still a helluva long way to go. We need businesses, housing, tourism and jobs. We need income producing ideas and a place for them to incubate. We need more restaurants. We need more elder care facilities so that the people who have always lived here can continue to live here, in their community, near their families, in a safe environment.
But we have made a start.
And I feel like there are people here carrying the torch. People like Neal Riley and Marcus Wray to keep the city in line. People like Michelle Mendenhall, Joe Bryan and Todd Lafferty to maintain the slow but steady improvement going on at the Ferguson Museum. I am delighted to see the Plains Collective and Roy Espy working on bringing a new fresh face to the Cheese Festival. Engineering is underway – allegedly – to repair and refill the lakes at Roman Nose State Park. When that is accomplished and the hiking trails revamped, it will once again be known as the gem in the state park crown, bringing in visitors from all over.
So it is I feel that I can pass the reins. Really, I was just standing in until the cavalry arrived.
What I don’t know is who is going to sit at this desk at the Watonga Republican. Probably a young, talented person who will overshadow me and write their own history. And sports.
It has been an honor to be part of this community as it struggled to find its way into the 21st century. I like to think I helped a little. And I like to think I am leaving you in good hands.