Letter to the Editor: Philip Smith Will 'Rally the Troops'

It was eighteen months ago I graduated college with a Bachelors of Science in Politics and Government from Illinois State University.

As an exciting moment it should have been, I was overcome with disappointment when I returned home. I returned to a place in disarray lead by power hungry leadership with no real directions, but most of all no real SOLUTIONS.

Kendall County used to be the place to live. A place where you didn’t grow up being told “someday you can be the President of the United States”, but rather “someday you can be the Speaker of the House”. A place we were all proud to call home. What happened to that feeling? What happened to that Kendall County pride?

I returned to my home with no opportunities, no jobs, no money, no leadership and multiple student loans. Instead of waiting for something to fall into my lap I decided to go out and try to make a difference on my own. I went to events, introduced myself to people, pounded in signs, and stuffed letters, even walked door to door in hopes to make a difference. All this while working as a line cook just to get by.

In my efforts to make a difference in my community I stumbled upon a young man, like myself, named Philip Smith. Someone looking for the same opportunities and facing the same challenges as myself. We can all sit around and say that “this person is great” or “that person will do the right job”, but it is not until you get down in the trenches and sweat together that you find out what kind of person they really are.

It is this type of person that we need to lead our community. It’s this type of leader, no matter what the circumstances, will step up to the plate whenever they are called upon. Someone that will always stand on principal and do what is the right whether someone is watching or not, the true meaning of character.

It’s people like Philip Smith that exemplify these qualities and excel as leaders in times of need given the opportunity. We need someone of this caliber in this position to rally the troops, to call on the community, to call on our neighbors and say “I will ask, I will listen, and I will understand.”

To say enough is enough, it is time to stand up for what is right and not for who will profit. It’s time to say goodbye to what has not worked for you, the community, your home, and jump into the trenches with someone who will work for the better of all and not some.

I know there will be cynics questioning my right to support someone who I cannot vote for. The fact of it all though is, what happens in Oswego reflects upon the decisions made in Kendall County and vice versa. It is not a premise of Oswego to me at this point, but Kendall County, the place where you call home and I as well. It is the leaders we choose, in Yorkville, Plano, Oswego, that will continue to shape what we call home and what future generations hopefully will as well.

It is why I ask you to ask yourself how your leadership and others have been working for you and give Philip Smith the opportunity to bring back that feeling we all once had in Kendall County. Give him the opportunity to make us all proud once more.

Anthony Barry, Yorkville