A story about T.R.
While I did not know T.R. as well as I would of liked to, after all he passed away when I was only 14 years old, the impression that he left on me will stay with me forever and is the reason why I am a Democrat today. My father and T.R. were friends ( both great men who passed on long before there time) and I would see T.R. at different events, and he would always make time to talk to me whether it be about school, sports, or what I was doing later that day, he showed he cared. What really reinforced how much T.R. cared about the city and it's residents no matter how important they were or how old they were, was when the City built the Industrial Park. I live right next to the Industrial Park and overheard my parents talking about it and how they were against it and became worried of the effects this could have on my home and life. There was daily blasting and the house would shake and at 8 years old that type of thing can be a scary thing.
So what does an 8 year old do when he has a community concern? He does his civic duty and writes a letter to his Mayor of course! Which I did, I got a call one evening after coming home from school and it was the Mayor, he wanted to met with me. We scheduled a time and I went to his office and addressed my concerns and he sat their and listened. He set my mind at ease and I never will forget that day. It means more to me now then it did then. Here I am 8 years old and the Mayor who gets 30 calls a day and is busy with city business took time out of his day to meet with me. He could of brushed me off, or sent me a letter thanking me for my input, but he didn't, and I truly appreciate that.
Mayor Gallo is my idol, someone I aspire to become. If I can be half the man that he was, and help the people the way he did, I will be happy and fell my life is fulfilled. We all miss T.R. and his legacy is a great one, that lives in all of our hearts as Kingstonians.
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