By Gwendolyn McNuckles

I am experiencing a transformational experience.  I am serving as an Election Official at The First Assembly of God Early Voting location on Bosque Street in Waco, Texas.  This location has recorded the highest number of early voters in Waco for this election thus far.  At the closing of the polls Saturday night more than 10,000 people had cast their ballot there.  Many commented this is a record turnout.

My assignment is to be a greeter.  I help people move through the line to the check-in desks judiciously.  It is a blessing to me to serve in this capacity.  Registered voters from all walks of life pass me.  No matter how people are categorized, at that moment we are ONE.  WE are a homogeneous group with one purpose.  To use our right as citizens of the United States to cast our vote for the candidates and issues of our choice freely and without hindrance.

The lines are longer than anyone can remember in recent history.  Some are frustrated for the wait time.  In previous elections, we have been able to walk in and out.  We forget short lines meant lack of participation.  To have a government that reflects our views and needs we must participate.   As I stand at my post, I celebrate these long lines.  Many people comment with the same pleasure at seeing people using their rights.  Although I realize no one wants to stand in a long line for any reason.  I am grateful for the challenge.  I enjoy the position.  You meet the nicest people in the voting lines.  I have personally met over 5,000 people while working.

This experience is growing and strengthening me.  For example, I am learning it is important to take the time to communicate to people when change occurs. I am learning when I explain things using my best logic, sometimes that is understandable to others…other times, not so much.  I am learning to listen to the opinions of others who don’t agree with my brilliant plan.  After I have listened with empathy and not anger, I ask them to provide suggestions that will better suit the situation.  I hear many thoughts that have not occurred to me and try as many as I can.  These experiences are teaching me to be loving, caring, flexible and to work together with people who don’t agree with me.

Voting in the United States of America is a precious right. It has been a long hard fought journey to ensure every citizen can take part in the process.  It is something we have grown to take for granted.  I often hear people say they don’t vote because one vote does not count.  Susan B. Anthony and the Women Suffragettes marched in the streets, were beaten and jailed fighting for the right for women to vote.  Martin Luther King, Jr. the Freedom Riders and many others marched, were beaten, bled and died for the right to vote.  The minimum age to vote was changed from 21 years old to 18 years old because our young people were dying in the Viet Nam War at the age of 18.  They were fighting and dying to preserve our freedoms that we now take for granted in this nation at 18, but could not vote until the age of 21.

Some think if they are prayed up and place all their trust in God, they need not vote.  They fail to remember even Jesus paid his taxes and instructed all of us to render to Caesar what belongs to Caesar.  No matter how spiritual and religious we may be, there has been a provision to have a voice in protecting the civil liberties we hold dear.  Our right to assembly in our churches was established through the governmental system.  Everything I have cited above requires prayer, to be sure, but they also required civic action.  We will continue to need prayers and faith in God, but we also have a civic duty to participate in the governmental process.

When I met my husband, Roosevelt McNuckles, our first date was Sunday school and our second date was to register me to vote.  Roosevelt was born and raised in Mississippi.  He said, “If people were being killed to keep them from voting; it must be important to vote.”  Although he is no longer with us, I remember the lesson well.  I have never missed an opportunity to cast my vote or encourage others to do so.  The system we use in this country is not perfect.  It is fraught with many complaints and challenges.  I charge you: Do not to allow anything to convince you to give up your right to express your wishes for the path this nation will take.  Exercise your right to vote.

Early voting is available in McLennan County until Friday, November 2.  For dates and times for early voting, click here: Early Voting Times and locations.

After Friday, polls will be closed until election day, Tuesday, November 6.  Voting times and locations on election day are slightly different from early voting.  For election day voting times and locations, click here: Election Day Voting.

Gwendolyn McNuckles moved to Waco, Texas in 2011.  She is a proud to call Waco her home.  Gwendolyn’s background is in human resources.  She enjoys public speaking, teaching and community service.  Gwendolyn is the proud owner of Connections and Reflections, an event planning company that works with individuals and organizations to plan any size event.

The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.

By Cheryl Allen

If you have a child in the public school system, you probably already know — this is Red Ribbon week!

Red Ribbon is a national campaign observed annually on the last week of October.  It highlights the benefits of living drug-free. It also provides a valuable opportunity for adults to engage children and youth in dialogue about making positive life choices, including avoiding harmful substances. This year’s theme “Life is a Journey, Travel Drug-Free” reminds us of the importance of avoiding substance abuse throughout our lives.

The Red Ribbon campaign began in 1985 when drug dealers killed DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) agent Kiki Camarena. Camarena grew up in a dirt-floored house with hopes and dreams of making a difference. He worked his way through college, served in the Marines and became a police officer. When he decided to join the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, his mother tried to talk him out it. He told her, “I’m only one person, but I want to make a difference.” After his death, his friends began wearing red ribbons to honor the sacrifice made by Camarena, and as a symbol of their commitment to live drug-free lives.

The movement spread and in 1988 Congress established Red Ribbon Week to bring awareness to the value of living drug-free, and to pay homage to all men and women who have made sacrifices in support of our nation’s struggle against drugs.

Many schools have special activities planned, and VOICE is assisting them by conducting educational presentations and distributing red ribbons, banners, and other items.

The Red Ribbon campaign is an important, but small, part of VOICE’s work. As a nonprofit funded by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, VOICE offers a variety of free programs in schools and the community. Using an evidence-based curriculum, we teach healthy living skills, including tobacco, alcohol, and drug prevention. Visit texasschoolsurvey.org/report for data that reflects the critical need to reach children and youth at an early age.

VOICE also provides support for VASA (Voices Against Substance Abuse). This coalition is comprised of individuals from a variety of sectors who meet regularly to address ways to create a drug- and alcohol-free culture for youth in McLennan County. We encourage anyone who is interested in serving to contact us.

One of VASA’s initiatives is to encourage residents to dispose of unused prescription medication properly. On October 27, the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) is conducting a Drug Take-Back Day in our community. Please visit takebackday.dea.gov for times and locations. Another option is to take the drugs to a permanent disposal site at the Baylor Police Department or come by the VOICE office where we can provide disposable bags.

When children and youth choose not to abuse drugs, the communities and individuals benefit. Students who remain drug-free do better in school, are less likely to end up in the judicial system, and have a better chance of becoming productive citizens. With that in mind, effective drug abuse prevention education is a good bargain for our communities.  The cost of a school-based prevention program is approximately $220 per student compared to the $4,000 per student costs associated with substance use treatment, emergency room visits, lost productivity, etc.

Please visit voiceinc.org for information about programs that address substance abuse prevention in our community.

This Act Locally Waco blog post was written by Cheryl Allen. Cheryl has served the community professionally and as a volunteer for many years. She is the Director of Program Development for VOICE and is an adjunct lecturer in Civic and Community Service at Baylor University.

The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.

By Graham Duncan

If you’re like me, one of the first things that pops into your mind when you think of local government is the small town of Pawnee, Indiana, home of NBC’s hit comedy Parks and Recreation. In the show the politics of Pawnee are quirky, unreasonable, and unique. While the show may not be based on a real town, local politics can be all of these things. I imagine the politics in Waco are no exception. Sometimes situations can create quirky political solutions. Other times, political, social, or legal realities can force decisions that may be considered by some to be unreasonable. And Waco is unique; the city has its own history, its own problems and its own way of solving those problems in the political arena.

But sometimes it can be hard to know what is going on locally or confusing to figure out how things work in the city. I’m new to Waco and I wanted to learn more about how local politics work here. And I wanted to share what I found with everyone! So, here goes!

City Council

Waco’s local government is set up in a council-manager model. What does this mean? Basically we, as Wacoans, vote to elect council members to represent the five districts in the city. The “mayor” is elected at-large and becomes the sixth member on the council. The mayor serves as the head of the government for ceremonial and emergency purposes. The mayor is also the only council member with a term limit. No one may be mayor for more than three two-year terms. So, the council has six members, five directly represent each district, and the mayor represents the city as a whole. All council members and the mayor are volunteers, by the way.  They don’t get paid for their service.

These elected officials, working on behalf of their constituents (the citizens of Waco) hire a professional public administrator (aka the city manager) to be the planning and executing arm of the government. The city manager is in charge of executing the vision the council has for the city. Day-to-day operations, making sure the city is responsive to the needs of the citizens of Waco, and providing feedback to the council on how things are going are part of what the city manager does for the city. So, in a nutshell, the city council provides a forum for the people’s voice to be heard in the legislative process of the local government. They are the elected representatives of the people and have a certain function granted to them by the city charter. The city manager provides the city with an executive power, granted that position by the elected members of the government.

So what does this mean in a practical sense?

I spoke with Councilman John Kinnaird, who represents District Three, about the relationship between the council and the other parts of city government. The council, as mentioned above, provides a vehicle for the people’s voice to be heard. Whenever there is a problem in the city the public has the opportunity (and the responsibility) to let the city know about it. The council ensures that taxpayers’ dollars are being put to use on projects the public cares about. One practical example of this is the roads in Waco. People have been bringing up issues with the city’s roads and the council has begun responding. Typical road maintenance costs the city about $3.5 million in a given year. When I spoke with Councilman Kinnaird I learned that, in response to citizen’s complaints about the roads, the city is putting $16 million this year towards road repairs. The council decides how the money will be spent and works to ensure the different parts of city government are working to accomplish the tasks desired by you, the citizens of Waco. The response may not always be as quick as we would like, but the council listens to the citizens and works to make sure problems in the community are solved.

Another example is the local animal shelter. There was an increasing demand on the limited services provided by the Waco Humane Society. They were taking in 10,000 animals per year and two-thirds of those animals were being euthanized because the shelter could not keep up. The council saw the need and worked to help provide support for the shelter. The council worked to fundraise money, they partnered with nonprofits in the community providing excellent care to the animals of Waco to learn how those organizations were serving the needs of those animals.  There was a concerted effort to make the public humane society work for the community and for the animals that found themselves without a home. As a result of all this collaborative work, more recently the shelter was taking in around 6,000 animals per year and had a more than 90% live exit rate. That’s pretty cool.

Local government may not always be “sexy”; it may not always be exciting or even interesting. But what happens on the council affects each and every one of us. Talk to your city council representative. They want to hear what you have to say, and they are members of the community just like we are. They care about what happens here and they want you to care as well. Find out who your representative is. All of the information is available at www.waco-texas.com/council.asp; you can find district maps as well as the names and contact information of the council members.

You can also attend the city council meetings, which happen the first and third Tuesday of each month with the “Business Session” starting at 6 PM. There is always space made for citizens to address the council at each meeting. Get to know your representative. Get involved. Help make the Waco community better and stronger.

Graham Duncan is 24 years old, recently married, and recently moved to Waco. He graduated from Asbury University in Kentucky in 2016 with a degree in Political Science. Since graduating, he spent a year as a full-time service volunteer in Tucson, Arizona, and after that started working at The Home Depot. His wife is currently studying for her Master’s in Higher Education at Baylor and he is doing his best to support her!

The Act Locally Waco blog publishes posts with a connection to these aspirations for Waco. If you are interested in writing for the Act Locally Waco Blog, please email [email protected] for more information.