What a year this week has been! This week I have watched our community pull together and tear apart all at the same time. “There are no problems we cannot solve together, and very few that we can solve by ourselves.” ~ Lyndon B. Johnson

The airport authority held its first Goto meeting and did wonderful. Was it flawless? No. Did they accomplish the business they needed to keep lift under their wings and help us be in a better place after this crisis is over? Definitely! For those that have not seen it in the paper, we are ever closer to summer improvements that will extend runway 5-23. This project is years in the making and will open us up to potentially larger projects in the future.

After 24 years March 31 was Jana Plump’s last full-time day. I word it this way because she is still going to help a few days a week and fill in on occasion. I know she will also be a text message away when I have a question on whatever we are working on. Thank you, Jana, for your service to our community.

As the weather is breaking, we are seeing a ramp up of construction projects that were already in the works for this year. Utility work on Airport Road has pushed back the start of that project a few weeks. They are getting closer, and we should see Phase I start in the next week or two. We continue to make adjustments to the plan to try and be ready when work traffic returns to Freeman Field. We saw the completion of a manhole project on O’Brien Street. The intersection of Centennial and South O’Brien should at least reopen to partial traffic before the end of this week. We will continue to work to make sure Seymour is still the place we know and love as we move forward.

April 2 we learned that our kids will not return to school as they are used to it. I have three daughters: a senior, sophomore, and a sixth grader. My senior will miss some of the milestones that we all took for granted. While this isn’t how anyone has pictured it, I am happy with her reactions to the situation. The class of 2020 will have a totally different story to tell their kids about their senior year than any we have known in the past and hopefully we will not face a situation like this again in our lifetime.

Here we go on COVID-19 stuff from the week. After seven internet meetings, I can tell you I am proud of how many are working together.

Meetings with medical professionals.

Meetings with industry heads.

Meetings with Non-profit leaders.

Meetings involving people from various levels of government.

I have learned more about the authority of my office in three months than I ever wanted to learn. Why? Because even though some think I can do whatever I want in the city of Seymour, I still have to uphold the Constitution and make sure that I am not infringing on anyone’s rights. It scares me beyond belief to see how many people will loudly proclaim that I can or cannot do whatever it is they want me to do or not do. No decision is entered into lightly, including joining with the county and moving us to a travel watch on April 3. In Jackson County, we continue to have new confirmed cases of COVID-19. I still encourage you to stay home and social distance.

Here we are at the end, and if you didn’t catch the reference to the quote in the beginning, we are in trouble. We have very few problems we can solve by ourselves. As with any problem some play larger roles in the solution than others. That does not mean that their part is any less important. Working together, we will beat this. Not feeding into the anxiety by sharing rumors will help. Staying home when possible, and when you can’t, practicing social distancing will help. If you have to ask if this trip is essential, I hope you think hard about it before you leave the house. This week, I have had several conversations with local clergy that ended with prayers. I have had several people reach out and let me know they have been praying for me. From the bottom of my heart I CANNOT thank you enough for this. Peace be with you.