Following the Fourth of July: Elton Daniels

The Fourth of July reminds us that a nation is not held together by politics alone. It is held together by a willingness to begin again, to work together, and to believe that tomorrow can be better than yesterday.

Rocky Mount has been through a difficult season. Citizens are frustrated. Questions remain unanswered. Confidence has been shaken. Those concerns are real, and they deserve honest attention.

But every community eventually reaches a point where it must decide whether it will remain divided by yesterday or begin building tomorrow.

Focus a moment on City Manager, Elton Daniels.

No one expects miracles. What people do hope for is leadership with purpose, clarity, and determination. The position of City Manager exists for exactly that reason, to organize talented people, establish priorities, solve problems, and move a city forward one decision at a time.

Like a free pass around GO, to reset the game board, let’s give Mr. Daniels our good faith as he undertakes that responsibility. Let’s try a little love and see if it pays off.

As we leave Independence Day behind and look toward the future, perhaps this is the right moment for all of us to rally around one simple idea:

One city ready to move forward together.

Change will not come down from the clouds. But a City Manager who believes in the power of decisive leadership, with the right focus, using the tools we already have, can be used to heal what has been broken.

I leave this Katherine Mansfield quotation on the Manager’s desk.

“There is nothing to be done but to go ahead with life moment by moment… try to create order and peace around me…”
— Letters and Journals