Behind the Clouds
Weekly update #305 11/23/2025 to 11/29/2025
“Tell me a positive from your day.” I have said this phrase towards the end of the work day for the last few weeks now. Before I share more, let me tell you a little about this Thanksgiving week serving as the mayor of the best small town in America.
This past week, Officer Dakota Burke was awarded a Life Saving Award during the Board of Public Works and Safety (BOW) meeting. While off duty on a Sunday, his neighbor’s child came knocking on the door that their father had passed out and needed help. Officer Burke didn’t miss a beat and grabbed his bag from his patrol car along with his automated external defibrillator (AED) to help his neighbor. The AED would shock the patient twice before the paramedics arrived. The quick thinking and fast response helped save a life. Congratulations on your award and keep up the good work, Officer Burke.
The BOW also approved several items at the meeting this week ranging from food truck renewals to right of way issues on the O’Brien Street project. This project started with over 100 parcels to be worked through and is now down to just two before we can head to the bidding process before construction. The two phases of O’Brien Street are from 4th Street south to Village Circle. This was the first Federal Aid project that we proposed just a few weeks after I took office in 2020. This is also hopefully the last project to be majorly affected by inflation during COVID. The next project we received was awarded in 2022, and we believe we had a better grasp of expected increases when we applied for it. The other two major projects we have dealt with similar inflation problems were 2nd Street and 4th and O’Brien, both of which were awarded with estimates developed prior to COVID. Thank you to everyone who has been plugging away at the O’brien Street project for the last five years. Like all major projects it will be nice when it is completed.
Christmas at Crossroads started with Santa arriving via Seymour Fire Department Engine 14 and ended a little early as the snow really started to fly about half way through. Gumdrop the reindeer was a hit as kids waited to get a visit with Santa. The Fraternal Order of the Police provided free hot chocolate and cookies, and with a little help, the switch was flipped and the Christmas Tree at Crossroads Park joined the downtown lights and kicked off the season here in Seymour. With conversations already started and notes being taken, I am excited to see how this event and a few others shift for next season and launch the 2026 holiday season with a bang. To everyone that puts in the hours and hours preparing to light up Seymour, thank you for all your hard work.
While I had a little time this week, I stopped by to visit with the residents of the Centerstone Recovery Transitional House (CRTH) here in Seymour. As we sat around the kitchen table and discussed ideas, I couldn’t help but think about how far our community has come in the last several years in the world of recovery. Just a few short years ago the idea of a CRTH couldn’t get a seat at the table to be worked through, and now the first of three have opened with more on the horizon. For those not familiar with the concept, this is a home for those who have made it through the first steps of recovery and have been clean for a while and are ready to take the next guided steps towards what most of us consider a normal life. This step is a 90-day option where the residents find work, attend programs, and work on themselves while preparing to graduate to the next level. When the next two homes are completed Seymour will have beds for 16 men and eight women who are fighting to make a new life for themselves. To everyone who has believed in the recovery work here and beyond, thank you! Today, I will leave you with a quote from Louisa May Alcott, "Be comforted, dear soul! There is always light behind the clouds."