A Day (Or Month) in the Life . . .

Jimmie Cates left big shoes to fill. But fill them we must -- and Utah Code 20A-1-510 gives us only thirty days to do so.

I have fielded questions from every quarter on this subject, so, for your convenience and mine, I'm posting answers here at the blog.

Q. How will the vacancy be filled?

A. Any interested applicant must submit his or her name and a letter of interest to City Recorder Richard Colborn by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, June 1. Applicants will give brief presentations before the City Council in its regular session on Tuesday, June 12. The Council will then meet on Thursday, June 14 to fill the vacancy. In accordance with statute, the vacancy will be filled by vote of the Council, not by the Mayor.

Q. What makes a good City Council member?

A. From my informal conversations with various members of the Council, I can surmise that we will be looking for somebody who communicates well; somebody who has substantial experience with two or more aspects of the City, so that he can see the big picture; who is open and willing to consider questions from all points of view; who has the time and ability to serve; and, finally, somebody who will fit well into the synergy and momentum the current Council enjoys.

Q. What is the workload of a City Council member?

A. I was told, when I filed for office, that I could expect to give twenty hours a week. This number has held, though certain few crisis weeks have taken thirty to forty hours. Here's how I spend my time:

City Council meetings and work sessions. Three to four hours per week, not including prep time.

Committee assignments. (Meetings of the Library Board, Beautification and Shade Tree committee, etc.) Four evenings per month, not including prep time.

Department assignments. (Parks department, Economic Development, etc.) Two to four meetings per month, not including prep time.

Miscellaneous meetings that come up on short notice each week: two or three.

Meetings and trainings with state and regional agencies such as UDOT, Utah League of Cities and Towns, etc. A day or two every other month.

Communication. Time spent answering mail, returning phone calls, and blogging: about three hours each week.

Writing. This isn't technically part of the Council's job description, unless you define the job as whatever it takes to do the job. In the last eighteen months, I've written two mailers, two grants, and codified the organizational structure of the Arts Council. Each project took me about eighteen hours.

Prep time. This is time spent following through on committee assignments, reading packets and minutes, reading books, doing Web research, etc. About two hours each day. I do it while my baby naps.

Q. Can a homemaker do this job?

A. Yup. And who better -- after all, isn't American Fork our home? I look at homemaking, or child-rearing, if you prefer, as a full-time job. That puts me in the same boat as my colleagues Shirl LeBaron and Ricky Storrs, who also hold full-time jobs. If they can pull part-time hours on top of their day jobs, so can I.

Q. Can a homemaker do this job and keep her sanity?

A. That's not technically an issue with me, because I wasn't fully sane to begin with. But here are a couple lists to show how the Council fits into the fabric of my life:

What I Still Do
--Make dinner
--Practice the piano
--Make my children play the piano
--Read compulsively
--Read to my children
--Help with homework
--Drive kids to three schools each day
--Rely on my husband's support
--Serve in a couple church callings
--Pull weeds
--Sleep like a baby

What I Don't Do
--Guilt
--Housework (I have kids for this)
--TV
--Soccer, basketball, T-Ball, or Little League
--PTA (this was the hardest to give up)

Q. I have my family, my church, my job, etc. Does the City really need me too?

A. Absolutely. This nation was built on the principle of government of the people, by the people, and for the people. We cannot ask our military to defend our freedoms abroad if we are not willing to defend them at home. Staunch conservative that I am, I nevertheless agree with Hilary that it takes a village to raise a child -- and it's our job to see that our village is whole. We need everybody to do their part.