I was very sorry to hear about the tragic passing of former Mayor Wally Nichols.

The community owes him a great deal of gratitude for his public service. He was elected to the mayor’s position during a recall election.

He brought the town back from some of its darkest hours. A local businessman, he was reluctant to run, when initially approached by a group of concerned citizens.

Wally in writing his profile for the Town’s history book wrote the following: “In 2003, when I was elected to the position of mayor by way of a recall election of incumbent John Beydler, Fountain Hills was in turmoil.

“There was a financial crisis with our fund balance way below recommended levels. We had commercial paper go bad with Pacific Gas and Electric. Moody‘s put us on their financial watch list.

“We were transitioning from the Marshal’s Department to MCSO for police services trying to figure out how to pay for Rural Metro’s fire and emergency medical services with the elimination of the Fire District. The elimination of the extension on the State Trust land was just over the horizon.

“As you can imagine, the image and reputation of Fountain Hills among the Valley’s cities and towns, was at its lowest point ever. The council and I had our work cut for ourselves to right the ship and move ahead on a positive course.”

Ten- and 20-year plans were completed and through his leadership, the Town regained its financial integrity.

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As I said last week, I had to get better in time for a planned trip to Disney World on April 9.

I spent most of the prior two weeks suffering and recovering from a bout with Influenza A and pneumonia in both lungs. That treatment included a stay at the Mayo Hospital.

An uneasy feeling was coming over me when the final day came before the trip. I had to go to the Mayo Clinic for a final checkup before we left on Saturday morning.

Fortunately, my lungs suddenly cleared up, as I took the last of my medications.

My doctor was still on vacation, so I saw another female doctor who gave me the green light to go.

She did make the comment, that she could think of a lot better places to go for a quiet vacation than DisneyWorld.

“You tell that to our grandkids. They have been counting on going to DisneyWorld with grandma and grampa since Christmas time,” I told her. Well, to make a long story short, I survived the six-day pass at DisneyWorld.

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Do you believe it? Another school year is almost

over. That also means it’s time to be thinking about the graduation edition.

You can place a congratulatory ad for your favorite graduate for as little as $25.

For that amount you can place a one-column by 2-1/2 inch ad. You can add full color for just $50 more. You can place a bigger ad, up to a full page for $510. Again, full color is $50 more.

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Diane and I attended the 90th birthday celebration of Lois Grate, a longtime resident and business woman.

For many years she was also my next door neighbor. She and husband Bill opened Mr. G’s Interiors in 1973.

They retired in 2005. She used to do extraordinary things on her birthday.

For her 57th, she sky–dived solo.

At the luncheon, she was honored by the Chamber for her nearly 40 years service as a Chamber volunteer and Ambassador.