The people of Northwest Arkansas have a lot for which to be thankful, not the least of which is their residency in this part of the world. Ah, we know: Everyone thinks where he lives is the best. Otherwise, why not go try somewhere else?
But on this day before Thanksgiving, it’s easy to quickly develop a long list of things for which gratitude is the proper response. Certainly no printed list can be the be-all, end-all collection because every day seems to bring new developments in the region worthy of our appreciation. It’s a healthy exercise, nonetheless, to write some out, to articulate the specifics.
Here are some things we’re thankful for as we head into Thursday’s festivities:
• Elected officials — Yes, really. These folks bear a lot of the brunt of some criticisms on this page, which might lead to the erroneous conclusion we lack an appreciation for their efforts. It’s entirely to the contrary. The people who step up to serve in public office deserve a great deal of thanks, especially those serving in posts that offer little or nothing in the way of compensation. The same goes for appointed public officials. Public service is a high calling and those who do it well are an underappreciated lot. Our communities rely on them. It is because we hold these positions of public trust in such high regard that we’re so disappointed when someone let’s the public down through dishonesty, neglect of duty, poor leadership or a host of other shortcomings. Nonetheless, Northwest Arkansas has a lot of leaders who simply do the work and do it effectively, and they put up with the scrutiny that public service brings to help advance their communities. For them, we give thanks.
• The planning efforts of the Beaver Water District — District officials are already looking ahead to 2031 and a possible expansion of the district’s water collection, treatment and distribution systems to meet the needs of a growing population in Northwest Arkansas. The agency has met the needs of the region. “That’s the position we want to stay in. We don’t want to be lagging,” said Alan Fortenberry, chief executive officer of the water district.
• New approaches to education — Most recently, the Fayetteville School District proposed the Fayetteville Virtual Academy to offer online support for learning for up to 500 kindergarten through 12th-grade students. Springdale has proposed to convert its School of Innovation to a charter school with options for online learning. Across our region and the state, educators are increasingly recognizing not everyone learns the same ways and not everyone’s situation is suited to the traditional classroom setting or approach. With the advancement of technology, new models for education show great promise for the future of all students.
• New ways of voting — Voters in 2016 will in many places, including Benton and Washington counties, get a new taste of freedom when it comes to casting their ballots. Technology is making it possible for election commissions to pursue development of voting centers rather than the long-standing approach of polling places. The difference? With voting centers, any voter can vote anywhere within the county he resides. With the highly mobile nature of our NWA population, it makes sense to remove unnecessary geographic limitations on voting.
• Mike Huckabee isn’t governor
— We weren’t going to include any presidential politics, and some won’t consider a mention of Mike Huckabee to fall into that category, but for now he’s a formal candidate for the GOP presidential nomination. Then last week we got the press release from the former Arkansas governor’s campaign. The headline read “Huckabee: Obama wants Americans to memorize Koran verses.” Reading deeper (why do we torture ourselves?), it turns out the comment was the usual Huckabee rhetoric in response to the hotel attack in Mali. “After this attack in West Africa, Obama’s new domestic terrorism plan probably requires Americans to memorize Koran verses,” Huckabee’s statement said. So, his own campaign misquotes him in the headline, and the comment is simply ridiculous. Let us count our blessings that Huckabee is a Florida resident nowadays.
• Subscribers and readers — We give thanks for everyone who finds the stories and photos this newspaper staff produces in coverage of our region of value. That goes for the people who write letters to the editor, too. We can’t say thank you enough for your readership.
Other stuff we’re full of thanks for this Thanksgiving? Barrett Baber; redevelopment of downtown Springdale and Tyson Foods’ commitment to that progress; Brandon Allen; “The Walking Dead”; journalists who pursue stories with a sense of fairness; farmers markets; deer hunting; animal shelters; public school systems; Arkansas 23, aka The Pig Trail; Blanchard Springs Caverns; charitable organizations and givers’ generosity; KUAF; firefighters and law enforcement officers;
And lastly, here’s to the opportunity to live, work and play in Northwest Arkansas. It has almost everything to offer, even all the road construction of a big city. The people and places of the region make it easy to say we’re thankful.
WHAT’S THE POINT?
Northwest Arkansas is a place that makes it easy to be thankful.