Stumping For The PEC Board Brings Some Interesting Meetings

By Linda Kaye Rogers

This process of campaigning continues to unfold with new challenges and new delights. While it has required a huge amount of time and energy to literally knock on hundreds of doors and meet with members wherever possible, it has consistently held the element of fun. Perhaps this is because I enjoy meeting people and am used to hearing complaints.

Since the ballots from PEC have arrived to choose new board members, the biggest question is: “How do I know who to vote for? I don’t know any of these people.” Fortunately I am not running into very many people who have thrown away their ballots. They seem to be sitting on the kitchen counter waiting for an epiphany or the courage to sort through it and make a decision. Fifty Eight candidates is pretty daunting.

I’m still running into anger regarding the law suit settlement and the compensation to the former GM Bennie Fuelberg, Assistant GM, and Board President. This is subsiding a little bit. The distribution of Capital Credits is now a hotter item and there is a great deal of confusion as to who gets it, how it will be determined and when. One dear elder lady expressed great anxiety because she had remarried and didn’t think she would be found. (I’m tracking this for her).

One has to be careful when knocking on doors, you just never know who will answer. This has come home a couple of times. One evening I was out and the very first house I went to was that of one of my opponents from Kyle, Sherry Anderson. She was working in her yard, invited me in and we had a great chat.

The second time was not quite so pleasant and really drove home something we seldom think about. Last Monday after the monthly PEC Board meeting, I decided to hit a couple of streets in Johnson City. I parked my car on a neighborhood street with my campaign sign prominently posted. I knocked on several doors before finding someone home, then had a good run and decided to head back to my car about 7:30 pm.

There were 2 women standing in the yard near my car and I went up to them. I received a strange reception, but not angry or rude. I introduced myself and was quickly told they knew who I was and really didn’t want to talk to me. Mrs. Will Dahmann (wife of former Asst. GM of PEC) introduced herself and briefly shared the grief and shame her family had suffered as a result of recent events at PEC. She was very much the lady as she excused herself. Her neighbor/friend finally began talking with me and shared many positive things about her long-time friend and neighbor. As I listened, I realized I was talking to “innocent bystanders." These are the people who have nothing to do with an event (war, robbery or whatever), but get hurt in the process. Here were 2 women (and children) who only knew the goodness and love of an individual who is perceived as a villain by others. While this may not change the facts or perceptions, it is the other side of the coin. And every coin has 2 sides.

Knocking on doors has offered other delights. I have been invited into numerous homes, delighted in viewing collections, played with dozens of family pets and run into a woman from my hometown. This was amazing because I am from a small town. I’ve reconnected with a professional liaison and boosted my new professional direction with another therapist. Standing in yards and lovely Texas front porches, discussions have ranged from gardening to other politics to spirituality to a free therapy session. You just never know!

As ballots get closer to the expiration date, and the Texas heat sets in, I doubt door knocking will continue. PEC continues to be in the news and hopefully soon that news will turn into something more positive. As Eric Stratton, a candidate for District 3, has said, “I’m tired of seeing my co-op on the front page.”

Linda Kaye Rogers grew up on a small family farm in the Rio Grande Valley. She received her BA and Masters of Science in Social Work from UT Arlington. She has taught smoking cessation, communication skills, stress management and parenting in hospitals, corporations, community groups and churches. Linda Kaye moved to Wimberley in 2000 where she built a straw-bale cottage and immediately established a rainwater collection system as her water supply. That same year she began volunteering at the Katherine Anne Porter School and has worked in various capacities at the school. She is an avid organic gardener, animal lover, conservationist, and environmentalist. In 2005 she spearheaded efforts to defeat a road bond that would have benefited a developer and cost Woodcreek North residents a dramatic and 20-year tax increase. Linda Kaye is a member of PEC4u, the group of PEC members who initiated the investigation of PEC Board governance and practice.