If you are sitting at home in your favorite comfortable chair… or maybe you are at the desk of your office simply scanning today’s news… get really relaxed, because I’m going to ask you a couple of questions.

Have you ever thought about running for public office or volunteering to be a community servant leader? Maybe you could be a coach for a kid’s sports league. Maybe you could volunteer to help at one of Grant County’s many non-profit organizations. Have you considered being an officer of a civic organization or you could serve on a committee at your church? I believe that people wanting to be servant leaders are a special breed of folks.

Yet in today’s world, finding people willing to face the scrutiny and public ridicule from people with opposing views… well, it’s hard to find folks who are willing to step up anymore.

So, think about this for a minute. It doesn’t matter if you are 33 or 73, is there any thing in your past that would be embarrassing if it became well-known in public?

Really… did you ever get caught lying to someone? Did you ever get caught cheating on a test in school? Did you get called for too many penalties while playing sports? Did you ever stiff a waiter or waitress? Did you ever go on a date and you did something that your date perceived as maybe moving along too quickly? And nowadays with every person holding a phone that records audio, video and still pictures… have you ever been caught looking at a person in a suggestive manner? Have you ever told a dirty little joke to a friend, and then you hear it on social media because someone nearby recorded what you said? Or maybe you have made someone mad… and that person starts a rumor about you. Maybe the rumor is so salacious it has a terrible effect on your spouse, your children and even your employment.

As you watch the daily news, you have to wonder, why would anyone want to place themselves in this type of situation… no matter whether the rumors are fact or fiction?

So, the big question for you is this… Are You Perfect? I don’t believe any person walking the face of the Earth today is perfect. We are definitively habitants of an imperfect world and we do make mistakes and lousy decisions from time to time. And I do not believe that some of the stupid things I did in the 1970s, 1980s, maybe the 90s, should be held against me now; since I have changed my life. I have grown older and wiser. I have redeemed myself in the eyes of my community. Or… does the good work I have performed in the past 30 years count for anything.

We are a community, county, state and nation in need of good people willing to serve in public roles. I hope you will not make future decisions based on the current social trends of “get you at any cost.” I hope you will have the intestinal fortitude to make the decision to serve as a public servant in the future. I surely hope you never have to endure the type of ridicule we see nightly on the national, state and regional news.

The Silver City Grant County Chamber of Commerce continues to look for good men and women. Our business community needs good people to emerge as future leaders. If you have ever thought about joining the Chamber of Commerce, call us at (575) 538-3785. To have a great country, we need great people. You don’t have to be perfect… just willing!