Contrary to official rumor, I did not have the keys to MayorAl’s
Azorian castle in Portugal while on vacation. I did take the golf
trip of a lifetime with seven great friends to Scotland after a
couple of years in the planning stages. That jaunt included
goosebumps on the Old Course at St. Andrews, both the kind caused
by reverence for sporting history and the kind caused by rain and
wind. To top it all off, my half-Irish, half-Danish wife met me in
our shared ancestral Ireland for a wonderful week-plus, and we had
a ball. BTW, underdog County Kerry won the huge All-Ireland Gaelic
Football Championships over neighboring County Cork. I’m hoping
Michael Benson at our own lovely Irish pub, the Claddagh, taped the
game …
Contrary to official rumor, I did not have the keys to MayorAl’s Azorian castle in Portugal while on vacation. I did take the golf trip of a lifetime with seven great friends to Scotland after a couple of years in the planning stages. That jaunt included goosebumps on the Old Course at St. Andrews, both the kind caused by reverence for sporting history and the kind caused by rain and wind. To top it all off, my half-Irish, half-Danish wife met me in our shared ancestral Ireland for a wonderful week-plus, and we had a ball. BTW, underdog County Kerry won the huge All-Ireland Gaelic Football Championships over neighboring County Cork. I’m hoping Michael Benson at our own lovely Irish pub, the Claddagh, taped the game …
And did you know that one John Gilroy dreamed up all those famous ad campaigns for Guinness Beer? Neither did I before the tour, but I think given that bit of history, we could use a brew pub downtown …
Upon my return, lo and behold, though no keys to MayorAl’s castle (built on the highest hill with expansive views of the sea) did await, an invitation appeared – to a five-hour meeting. Just grand. MayorAl’s roundtable (set up in rectangular fashion of course), lasted nearly the whole alloted time and brought together a whole bunch of people who care about Gilroy’s future, both in financial and community terms. Not sure what will come out of it, but one panelist, after telling a potentially tragic personal story about a child being injured, said he’d be willing to “pay any tax” for public safety services …
The issue came up in a very brief Q&A with Fire Chief Dale Foster about the redundancy and expense of having firefighters and ambulance personnel answering all medical calls. I get that “pay any tax” notion, and I think we all do. Years ago my two young daughters had to be life-flighted to different San Jose hospitals while my wife was ground transported via ambulance after a terrible car accident at Santa Teresa and Miller. The gratefullness our family felt for firefighters and ambulance personnel could not be measured. And that’s the point. Their service is invaluable. That is one of the great rewards which comes with their job – the ability and training to help other human beings. However, that does not and should not mean that we should “pay any tax” and blatantly ignore efficiency opportunities for those services.
In this new economic reality it is about financial balance and common sense while maintaining public safety. We cannot afford to merely listen to the siren song of situational emotion and empty our collective wallets. The quality of life in Gilroy should include a broad spectrum of opportunities that have the potential to shape, change and influence lives. Recreational opportunities, art classes, athletics, music, education … it’s all a part of the mosaic. We need to be more cost efficient in the public safety arena in order to invest our tax dollars in other areas which improve the quality of life in Gilroy.
Going to the dentist isn’t real high on most people’s quality of life scale, but I did always welcome the chance to chat with the gregarious and kind-hearted Marcia Linden when I visited Dr. Vines’ office. She passed recently, and I missed getting a humorous earful and a teeth cleaning from one of those friendly people who make Gilroy such an enjoyable place to live and work.
Enjoyable is a good word, and our articulate guest columnist Erika Mailman (on the opposite page today) makes a case worth reading for enjoying and supporting Gilroy Gardens …
No garden picnic, apparently, for Superintendent Debbie Flores in our Web poll – 68% say they’re not satisfied with the direction that the school district is going since she took over two years ago? Floored by that. Granted, there have been some serious administrative hiccups, but she’s still moving the district leadership chess pieces around and that takes some time to stabilize. She’s been the best superintendent I’ve seen in a quarter century, and this community is fortunate to have an intelligent school board, too. Despite numerous economic challenges and inherited problems, she has steered the school district ship well and dealt with problems straight on. She gets my approval vote hands down.
Kat Filice, owner of the best graphic design team in Gilroy hands down, is a month away from a Rotary-sponsored visit to witness humanitarian projects underway in West Africa. Hopefully, we can convince her to send us dispatches, if possible, and be our Gilroy window to the world.
It’s a small world indeed. Touching down in Philly from Ireland, we were catching a bite in between flights in the airport watching the Eagles offense struggle against New Orleans. Across were two Philadelphians straight off the set of the Sopranos. Anyway, I popped off, “You should have never given Jeff Garcia, our hometown guy, away …” and lo and behold, there he was on TV back in an Eagles uniform – well, whaddya know – indeed, wonders never cease …
