My Word

The award-winning youth librarian at the Shelby County Public Library, Sherry Bogard, was dismissed after an unfair board meeting held on June 19, 2012. At this board meeting, Mrs. Sherry, as she is called, was not permitted to state her case or make objections to the charges against her; all but one of the board voted to dismiss Mrs. Sherry based on speculation arising from a single viewpoint. The fact that there was not any kind of due process is among the more disturbing issues; however, there are others.

Leadership Shelby is an organization sponsoring an annual group of individuals from the county who have demonstrated leadership qualities and a deep commitment to the community and who are likely to assume greater responsibility in the future.

On Nov. 14, the class of 2012-2013 completed a full-day overview of the industry in our county. We toured the operation of four businesses, and reviewed a wealth of data on the trends in population and employment opportunity, as well as the economics behind the numbers.

Debby Sowell is thankful she is able to buy food... she has a home... she is a teacher.

Sowell, the art teacher at East Middle School, overcame obstacles to achieve her goal and is proud to share her story.

“I grew up poor,” she said. “My Mom had her GED. My Dad had a high school diploma. He wanted me to go to college and harped, ‘Medicine is the way to go’ because he wanted me to have money...something we never had.”

On Oct. 10 the 2012-2013 Class of Leadership Shelby embarked on our first educational adventure together as a team. I don’t think it was any coincidence that our first day trip was planned as “Agriculture Day.” After all, our county began as a booming agricultural land, and even though most of us do not get to see it every day, our county still thrives on agriculture, which has taken many different shapes.