I want to congratulate Peter Volny of Fountain Hills for yet another successful Concourse in the Hills event, this year being even more impressive than the past ones, with over 1,000 cars and estimated 30,000 visitors.

Peter does this event out of love of the sport, which also raises thousands of dollars for charity, in this case the Children’s Hospital. There are many such great friends of Fountain Hills who donate their time and talents to making this town so special. From the clubs, organizations, volunteers and just great community spirit, hats off to everyone.

I also want to recognize those who have stepped forward this year to run for public office, namely mayor and town council. Unfortunately, we did not have that two years ago when empty council seats were non contested. So, thanks to Mark Biermann, Brenda Kalivianakis, Allen Skillicorn and Hannah Toth running for council, and Kelly Smith and our own Sheriff Joe Arpaio running for mayor. There is one Democrat announced for council to date, that is Cindy Couture, a retired teacher.

The newcomers, Toth, Skillicorn, Kalivianakis and Bierman, offer an incredible array of talent and skills that will benefit Fountain Hills in the coming years. Of course, current Mayor Ginny is running for a third term, but there are also excellent choices to be made from the decades of public service and experience of Fountain Hills’ own Sheriff Joe.

Don’t forget to submit your name to serve on a Town board or commission. I only hope Mayor Ginny is not just going to reappoint those currently serving, but will consider others from the community providing fresh eyes and new ideas.