OPINION
The idea for this year’s Ranch Cities Guide originated from two things: a passing conversation with Leigh Ann Weaver of Texas-New Mexico Power about the work the linemen do and a conversation with Tioga Mayor Craig Jezek.
Jezek told me that there was one person who he wanted to see a feature about in the paper: Gerald Washington.
That’s because, he said, if anyone deserves recognition, it’s Washington.
My favorite people to highlight are the ones who don’t want the spotlight.
Usually they are too busy taking care of their work to stop and think about how they look while they do it.
Often those same people are treated as invisible by the general public, at least until something goes wrong.
I am grateful for the public works guys who keep the water flowing and clean, for the linemen who risk life and limb to keep the lights on for the rest of us.
For the pharmacists who keep an eye on what medicines might interact with or counteract each other.
For the trash collectors who keep the trash from piling up and the school custodians who cut down on illness and mess that the teachers and students have to deal with. Incidents in history show us what happens when the people society treats as invisible don’t keep us safe. The Winter of Discontent in 1979 in the United Kingdom. The Memphis Sanitation Strike in 1968.
We depend on linemen, utility workers and other crucial people who provide the services that keep us going.
They are right there with first responders, too, when there’s a fire or a natural disaster, spending time away from their families to keep the lights on and the water flowing.
The next time the power comes back on, thank a lineman.
The next time the water starts flowing through the pipes again, thank a public works employee.
The next time you wheel an empty garbage cart back into place, thank a trash collector.
Without them, our way of life simply wouldn’t exist.
Abigail Bardwell is the Editor & Publisher of the Post-Signal. She can be reached at aallen@postsignal. com.
