There are several people I want to thank right away. Firstly, Mark Cunningham.
Mark, thank you for your leadership over the past year. It has been a pleasure to have you as our president. Your leadership and commitment to advancing the goals of the organization have not gone unnoticed. Thank you. I look forward to working alongside you in the upcoming year as you continue as past president.
You know how in our organizations, the elected officials get the credit, and the staff do the work? So it is with FCCMA. This organization thrives on the efforts of Casey Cook, Carol Russell, Cindy Ryan, Melanie Howe, and the support of the entire Florida League of Cities team. Thank you!
To my husband, Bryan, for his love, support, and advice over the last 28 years, even when I didn’t want it, thank you. To our kids, Lauren, Nate, and our grandson Lincoln, I am so proud of everything you do. The world really is your oyster, and I cannot wait to see what you create for your future.
And to the first three managers I worked for – John Bowles, Cindy Hall, and Jim Hanson (none of whom are here today, but all of whom I consider friends) – thank you for all you taught me while we worked together.
As I was preparing for this year, I asked many previous presidents what they did during their year of service. Some focused on the next generation of leaders. Shannon held focus groups promoting women in leadership. Jim improved the website by adding an on-demand training library. William said he rode his bike across the state. Some said it all went by too fast. Lee Feldman told me he focused on the joy of service. Lee was president of FCCMA in 2006-2007. I think it has been long enough, Lee. Let’s spread some joy once again!
As managers, we deal with a lot of frustrating issues – lack of qualified staff, tough policy issues, complicated local elections, unfunded mandates from the legislature, angry, angry citizens, never enough funding, and even less time to get it all done…
It’s time to pause that for a few days and reflect on the positive side of this profession. What are the experiences you’ve had because of your role that brought joy to your life? Building a new playground, attending a professional sporting event, sitting in the front row at a live music performance, riding in an airplane, helicopter, boat, fire truck, or parade, shaking hands with a celebrity, taking an important meeting with movers and shakers in business, industry, or government?
For me, travel is that great joy.
I’ve had the pleasure of visiting 11 countries, 47 states, and 75 of our beautiful Florida cities. And in each of those places, I take pictures. Pictures of how that place does things differently than we do here. How is local government at work in unique ways there?
The images I shared included economic development kiosks in Ecuador, utility boxes in Orange Park, traffic signals in Morocco, a cave city in Spain, fire hydrants in Alaska, public swings in South Carolina, the lack of safety signage on a hike in Ireland, and utility markings in South Miami Beach. This last one brought me so much joy! I laughed out loud the morning I saw this, walking down the sidewalk. The sheer technical expertise needed to work in utilities in South Miami Beach is remarkable!
I also shared two data sets with the audience. These sets show that Florida ranks between 14 and 19 in the world economy, based on gross domestic product. That puts Florida between Spain and Indonesia as far as world economies go. Regardless of the source, our economy is one of the top 20 in the world! What does that mean for us today, right now?
It means that there is a whole lot of expertise in this room. It also means that we, as city and county managers, have a responsibility for an incredibly impactful system. As we are charged with maintaining and improving this world economy, that is, Florida, whom can we look to? Who is administering governments better, smarter, faster, cheaper, with more diversity of thought and greater transparency to their citizens?
The solutions to your unique issues may be sitting at the same table as you. Or it may be found in a place you never even imagined. We should be able to connect you with those resources regardless of whether you work in a rural sugar cane farming county or a city with 75 million annual visitors.
During the upcoming year, I would love to know what you are curious about. I’m curious about how the city hall in Boise, Idaho, runs on geothermal energy. I will be asking our FCCMA committees to get creative. Let’s reach farther to bring you solutions that will carry us forward into the next era of governance.
Thank you all, and I look forward to serving our association this year.
Sarah
