At their first March meeting, Wythe County supervisors rightfully bemoaned the fact that during the pandemic, county roads had collected more than their fair share of trash.
To be honest, Southwest Virginia struggled with litter before the pandemic. We aren’t exactly sure why folks living in one of the most beautiful, most pristine places on planet Earth feel that a empty bag of McDonald’s wrappers equals an improvement. We know that Virginia just banned the death penalty but feel that maybe lawmakers might ought to make an exception for those Neanderthals (with apologies to any real Neanderthals) who feel entitled to toss their junk out on our roads.
Obviously, we’re being a bit overly dramatic there, but the point stands that we as a community need to remedy the problem at the source. If litterbugs can’t stop on their own, we need public shaming and an intervention to help them solve it.
But we digress. This opinion isn’t about shaming cretins who dump trash out. It’s about the leadership that we need and maybe – given that we’re still tossing trash out on the daily – don’t deserve.
While the government was moving, as chairman Brian Vaught might say, at the speed of government, a government official stepped up and put her money, literally, where her mouth is.
Vice Chair Ryan Lawson had had enough, it seems, and ponied up her own money to launch a contest that will give one lucky person $300 in cold hard cash and, hopefully, get a slew of Wythe County roads cleaned up.
If you look up leadership in certain dictionaries – meaning the ones we’ve been able to deface – you’ll see a pen drawing of Lawson in the margins. We’ll talk with Mr. Webster about adding it to the real versions going forward.
Wythe County should be proud to have Lawson on the board. There’s no agenda there, no left/right divide, just a public servant taking seriously her role in doing the people’s business and making life just a bit better. She takes seriously the hymn that commands us to “brighten the corner where you are.”
If you see her out, thank her for her service and her vision. Help us celebrate good governance. Or better yet, get a trash bag, load up some litter and brighten your own corner.
