A Few Minutes with the Mayor – November 2018

The election is upon us. With all its insane anger and pent up hatred, I’ll be glad when it is over. Contrarily, I welcome the Thanksgiving season for the blessings in life. It’s a feeling we should have year-round.

Every election seems to get worse with the name calling and the hatred between partisans for causes they hold dearer than life. There used to be something called good manners, but evidently, that concept has been discarded by folks who never see the glass as half full. No, to them it’s half empty. I’m prone to wonder if they have experienced some of life’s tough times many of the rest of us have known.

I ran across a quote from Tony Bennett which struck me because of its similarity to events in my own childhood. He said, “I loved my mom so much because she had to work on a penny just to put food on the table… During the Depression in the United States, everybody had a tough time. And I was so hurt because she was crying that she didn’t have any food for us for Thanksgiving.”

I remember when my mother would load me into an oversized Red Flyer-type of handcart, and then walk from our tenement about two miles, across crowded streets, underneath elevated trains, and through strange neighborhoods in our Manhattan where the pushcart vegetable vendors gathered every day… all to save a penny on beets or carrots. That penny could be the difference between having bread on the table or an empty plate.

Believe me when I say we understood the meaning of Thanksgiving. Could it be that those with less, appreciate even more what they have, than those with more? This prompts me to express my thanks to some people who contribute to Jacksonville’s very special quality of life.

First are Michael and Mary Kell. In every way, they embody the classic American profile of hard working, caring citizens who set an example for the rest of us. You know them as the owners of GoodBean Coffee. Over the years, they’ve built a thriving business which offers their coffees in grocery stores and restaurants throughout the Rogue Valley and beyond. Michael writes a popular column in this paper every month. The Kells have supported city events as much as anyone and are two of the nicest people one can hope to meet. Yet there is a local “power couple” (at least they think they are) who would encourage people to boycott them. Why? Because Michael Kell has dared to tell people to vote NO on the meals tax initiative!

At this time, I wish to thank Michael and Mary for who they are and all they do. And if you’ve visited their establishment and have enjoyed their coffee, take the time to tell them! People like hearing they are appreciated.

Second is Whit Parker, the publisher of this newspaper. Never once has he told me what I can or cannot write. He even allowed me to do a faux Walter Winchell one time. I’m no Ed Sullivan or Herb Caen, but under his encouragement, I have become a writer and for that I’m grateful.

More importantly, Whit is another who cares deeply about Jacksonville. It shows in his newspaper. From reports about City Council goings-on to civic and social events, in-depth articles about caring citizens in town to the music and wine scene, and even to my movie nights…it’s all there in print.

Sadly, a few folks who are slandering the owners of GoodBean are behaving the same way toward the Jacksonville Review. I grew up with seven, yes seven, newspapers in New York and not one was as devoted to their community as is the Review. That includes the New York Times, the Herald Tribune, the Daily News, the World Telegram, and the Daily Mirror. It’s quite a list, but I say Jacksonville is fortunate to have this newspaper and its publisher. If you agree, and since Thanksgiving is upon us, thank the publisher and then thank the merchants who advertise in the Review and make it possible.

As for the naysayers with souls of vinegar who seek to divide us, I would tell them: people who think they’re important seldom are, while important people seldom think about being important.

Happy Thanksgiving one and all!