Opinions

When I was teaching broadcast writing and production at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin in Odessa, I laid down some rules for writing radio or television commercials. Basically they said two things: 1. No trite overused phrases. 2. Surprise the audience with something unexpected.

There must be a strong pull for people who grew up in Merkel, left to have successful careers, then returned to their hometown. I met a bunch of them recently. They are confident, poised and happy to be back home. One is a former NASA scientist who is now writing poetry. Another was a real estate mogul in Austin who returned to Merkel and opened two restaurants. Roger Moore had an award-winning advertising agency for 25 years, and then came home to manage Merkel’s Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development.

Tuesday, Dec. 29, was National Heroes Day, but I believe it’s never too late (or too early) to give a “shout out” to the heroes in our lives. My dad and my brother Jay have, and will always be, two of the people I look up to and admire the most. However, while living in Seminole, I have had the pleasure of meeting a slew of other heroes, our first responders.

The winter of 1777 had been an especially harsh one in Pennsylvania, and the War for Independence was not going well. The British had just captured the U.S. capitol in Philadelphia, turning back the ragged band of beleaguered volunteers of the Continental Army. Eleven thousand of them survived to retreat to nearby Valley Forge.