by Mike | 7 Jun 2010 | Executive, Primary Election, Recent Posts, Activities, 2010
Hello once again! As we begin to wind down here on Monday night, there are still a few key things that need to get accomplished. We have our platform meetings and then I will be interviewing and appointing people to positions in the Judicial Branch.
The party platform meetings are very important. Last year when I participated in the meeting, we outlined a platform that the candidates used later in the week in their campaigns and speaking points. It’s important that you create a favorable platform that is well-liked and not too specific so that it is easy to support when going up against the opposing party. You have to remember, it is fairly important that you support your party as much as possible.
On a lighter note, today you all had the amazing opportunity to hear from JoAnne Owens-Nauslar. She is an outstanding and unbelievably motivating person. Do not take lightly the things she had to say. Hopefully you took notes!
As you all prepare to transition into tomorrow (a very important day for campaigners) think about what roles you can play in someone’s campaign. If you are not running for a state office, consider helping someone and being their campaign manager or something similar. I know that I wouldn’t have had a chance at winning the election had it not been for my good friend Wyn Wiley last year who believed in me from day one. He headed up my campaign and as a result, freed me up to meet people and campaign in person the entire time.
Maybe your job this week is to be someone’s Wyn Wiley. Maybe it isn’t. Whatever your goals and aspirations are this week, enjoy them and give them your all. This week will be over before you know it and you don’t want to leave with any regrets.
Oh by the way, last year as a “Boys Stater” I discovered that if you fill a cup with ice cream and milk at lunch, all you need to do before having a quality milkshake at your disposal is stir it up with some sort of utensil (I prefer forks).
by Mike | 7 Jun 2010 | Executive, Top Stories, Town Elections, Recent Posts, 2010
Mayor Jim Hrouda of Hickman
Earlier this morning, the Mayor of Hickman, Nebraska, Jim Hrouda, spoke to delegates who won city offices last night. He spoke of many things, including the ups and downs, of the position as mayor and the role and action of city governments. Newspaper reporter Jeff Story of Manila Bay wrote an article to be published in the Tuesday edition of the Boys’ State Bulletin.
“Hickman Mayor Provides Insight for Mayors/Councils”
Jeff Story, Manila Bay
What could possibly be interesting about the job as mayor of Hickman? The town of just over 1,000 inhabitants has been noted as one of the fastest growing communities in Nebraska, and Mayor Jim Hrouda has been at the helm for about eight years. He spoke for over an hour to the Boys Staters about the job he serves and about city government in general.
Hickman is inevitably a city on the rise. Because of the southerly growth of Lincoln, the town continues to add more and more residents every year. Hrouda notes that being able to serve such an up-and-coming town is a privilege. Every day he is stopped while doing activities, such as mowing the lawn or driving around town, to answer questions and take comments from Hickman’s citizens. Even though those times aren’t always convenient, Hrouda believes that overall the job is a rewarding one. The mayor takes on that job as well as works at the bank in town. Per month, the mayor estimates that he spends around twenty hours working for the city.
There are also times when being mayor is not the most glamorous title. Two examples were given on certain occasions when Hrouda had to fight some stiff opposition. Most notably was the conflict regarding the horse, Peter Rabbit, owned by citizen Harley Scott. When the town annexed a portion of land, Scott’s land was included in that section. There, the elderly horse was housed its whole life, and he refused to remove the beloved Peter Rabbit. It’s going to die anyway soon, so why move it? News from Omaha and Lincoln covered the scuffle in great detail, and it took way longer than it should have taken to be resolved. In the end, it was ruled that the horse would be moved four miles to escape the new city limits. Moments like these are negative aspects of his generally positive job.
Hrouda has many high hopes for his city in the next ten years, including the construction of a viaduct and new community buildings. Many towns in Nebraska have similar issues as Hickman, and today’s session was an inside look on how things actually work. Hopefully our mayors took some notes on how to lead our towns to the highest potential!
by Dan | 7 Jun 2010 | Legislative, Executive, Judicial, Recent Posts, 2010
This afternoon, delegates interested in Advocacy Groups and Political Action Committees (PACs) met and began organizing themselves. Using one of six suggested PACs as a starting point, the boys first established their group’s views and positions before moving into the nuts and bolts of leadership responsibilities, membership and recruitment, and campaign finance. From these humble beginnings, powerful organizations, capable of making or breaking some of this week’s major elections, promise to emerge. Photo collage below.
by Mike | 6 Jun 2010 | Executive, Top Stories, Recent Posts, 2010
Today has been quite fun in my opinion. Hopefully everyone can agree with me that we have a great week in store for us. I enjoyed meeting a few of you already and I’m excited to meet the rest of you in the coming days.
I know a lot of you probably walked in here today planning to run for governor, lieutenant governor, or some other “prestigious” office, but understand that chances are, so did many others. Don’t let this discourage you from giving it your all, but be prepared with a backup plan to stay involved! For example, last year I participated in legislature and I greatly enjoyed it. Also, there are many opportunities with PACs and other activities.
Just so you are all aware, one of my responsibilities is to appoint judges. This includes the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, associate justices of the Supreme Court, and district judges. This will all be done through an interview process. If you are interested in any of these positions, be sure to file for appointment. This is done with the green form in your folder.
I’m very much looking forward to spending time getting to know all of you this week. If you have any questions feel free to come say hello. My room is 214. Thank you all so much!
Sincerely,
Governor Bryce Cain
Oh, and by the way, chorus kids, way to go! I did chorus last year, and whether or not the other “boys staters” know it, they should be very jealous. You get to see the “girls staters” everyday 🙂
