Our readers have spoken.
What kind of editor would I be if I did not try and kickstart a new calendar year with some resolutions for the path ahead?
However, if you are looking to find a David Letterman-esque Top-10 list of “Tips to Succeed at ‘New Year, New Me’ Declarations,” you will reach the conclusion of this piece full of disappointment.
Instead, it is about time for a new take on an old tradition.
In order to be a true “community” newspaper, the voice of our residents needs to be printed in these pages more and more. We have adjusted our coordinates and are back on-course; let’s at least spend 2023 actively engaging our readers much more often.
The Graham Star quietly launched an “advisory page” on Facebook (it’s not hard to find) during the pandemic, separate from our main bulletin board. This was to serve as the most direct way to receive input on topics, special sections, etc., and while sitting down to write this column, I called an audible and opted to hand the pen to you, by simply asking what you thought the biggest need was for Graham County?
That’s all that was needed – folks were eager to share their ideas. “Ask, and it shall be given you” (Matthew 7:7, KJV); novel concept.
I loved the civility and repetitiveness of the replies. It showed our residents both are compassionate about a better, bustling Graham County and want the same 4-5 things:
* Better telecommunications. Improved wi-fi was the first response I received (from a Robbinsville Elementary School teacher’s assistant, who cannot take tests for a psychology degree at her home without extreme difficulty) and that theme carried on through responses of faster Internet, upgraded phone lines and wider-spread cellular reception (for the third time in a year, Verizon’s towers went down throughout most of the county Sunday, just as a reminder).
* Code enforcement. Whether it is a building/structure that needs to simply be put out of its misery (I’m looking at you, former election-board office), or the fact that some individuals are comfortable with allowing pets to roam free, thus multiplying (not controlling; sorry, Bob) the county’s pet population, this is a must. The Graham Star actually had the audacity to broach the topic of an animal-control officer during its primary-candidate forum last year (confession: I wanted the question asked: send your hate mail to editor@grahamstar.com) and was almost universally scoffed at – and, yet, this suggestion on our New Year’s weekend post received several nods of approval.
A pair of reasonable salaries to ensure code enforcement (whether it be leash laws or with dangerous buildings) could go a long way. Hey, if you want to kill two birds with one stone, have the former election-board office razed and construct more parking for the courthouse/downtown area.
* More availability of children’s/family activities. This one made me both happy and sad. On one hand, it is long overdue and frankly, it is hard to argue that more options to occupy free time would diminish the rather-nefarious nature of what idle hands can do. As one reader astutely pointed out, “I love going and spending time with my family and having things to do, but would love to spend it in our town, rather than having to drive somewhere else to do it.”
A centralized center for children was suggested, as well as a year-round, weekly get-together for youth (similar to the popular “Summer Knights” series hosted by Graham County Schools). On the other hand, this would entail a serious undertaking, which brings me to …
* Industry. Like I’m sitting at Sweetgum on Sundays, I cannot “amen!” this enough. To earn a true, supportive income for a family, chances are you cannot do it without leaving the county for work. While we all want to see the Stanley Furniture/Oak Valley Hardwoods plant occupied again, let’s not forget that a drive down Main Street in Robbinsville (in either direction, really) is a solemn reminder of both what was and what could be again.
Before Rodney Orr Bypass was constructed, downtown Robbinsville had more dining options, retail stores and – if you go back far enough – options like a game room and a movie theater. I am still looking for the latter two on the bypass, but that’s beside the point. We can have five tourism-specific boards in a county of 8,000 residents as long as we please; without the simple existence of breathing humans and improved facade of dilapidated buildings, we can only maintain visitors for so long. This county is blessed with a lot of well-educated leaders on those tourism boards; let’s all work toward the common goal, shall we? And, lastly:
* Just get along. Please? Why fight? Argue? Backbite? Gossip? Lose your religion over someone else’s opinion? Make every single issue political? We are all in this crazy race called “life” together and here is the catch: none of us are crossing the finish line alive.
One huge negative of the pandemic is that time slowed down enough in our day-to-day routines that we all had more time to think of our stances on things, to become – ahem – “educated” on topics and, somehow, decide that our respective feelings were the only ones that both mattered and were undisputedly correct. Wrong, wrong and wrong.
We all want Graham County to succeed and it seems that all the bickering over alcohol sales and emergency contraceptives might have actually opened our eyes to the real pandemic: just how incredibly cruel we have all became, since it is so much easier to hide behind a keyboard. This theme was also mentioned frequently and might be my favorite.
“I would love for everyone to be kind! Love your neighbors, support each other and not bash each other,” one suggestion reads (well said). “I would love the separation of friends and families due to political issues to end. We all want what is best for Graham County. Why would we not? Let’s stop the dislike and disrespect for each other. Be kind.”
That should really be simple instructions for how to act like an adult.
Read back over those first four items: it’s all intertwined. Better telecommunication might be far-fetched enough to attract more industry. More industry might open the door for more tourism. More tourism is liable to pump enough revenue into the county that a state-of-the-art, centralized children’s center could be constructed. Downtown could receive a fresh coat of paint, which could lead someone to open their next business venture on Main Street … it’s the Circle of Life; it moves us all!
As we go through 2023, let’s stand behind our elected officials. Locally and regionally, there are individuals in office who truly care about the improvement of our area.
We can ask questions, recap discussion, but remember – you elected them. We publish their phone numbers as often as we can in this section of The Graham Star; call them. Let them hear your voice. You can get the gears in their heads turning. They can get the ball rolling on grants, wider support, etc.
From here, we have 360 days left in 2023. Let’s all work together to show the naysayers that Graham County is already what we know it is: the best place to live.
Kevin Hensley is the publisher/editor of The Graham Star. He can be reached via email, editor@grahamstar.com; phone, 828-479-3383; and Twitter @KevinHensleyCNI.