Team
Weekly update #306 11/30/2025 to 12/6/2025
Halford Luccock said, "No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it." Before I expand this thought though, let me share some of my week serving as mayor of the best small town in America.
Back in weekly update 296, I talked about what the 2026 budget process looked like due to the changes after Senate Bill 1 became Senate Enrolled Act 1 at the Statehouse earlier this year. This week, like most since it passed, had several hours of discussion about what the next several years look like. This week, the legislative team from Accelerate Indiana Municipalities provided an update during the Mayor’s Institute. While the changes they are proposing aren’t drastic and won’t bring all cities and towns back to where they were with the 2025 tax code, they will help. From the financial advisors around the state to the legislative team at AIM to the legislators who have taken time to meet with municipal officials, thank you for taking time to learn what impact SEA-1 is already having on our communities. Cities and towns make up the foundation of counties and 92 counties make up Indiana as a whole, and if the foundation is left with holes in their budgets, it will ultimately lead to Indiana as a whole declining over time.
This week, I had a chance to sit down with a group of pastors for breakfast and chat about what is going on in Seymour. While the biscuits and gravy are some of the best I have ever had, I appreciate the conversation even more. I always approach this group with a quick run through from each department before opening the floor for questions. Most of the pieces I hit on you have read here over the last several months. To everyone who attended, thank you for the chance to speak. If you are a part of a club or a group, formal or informal, and would like me to visit, please just reach out to City Hall, and we can work on getting a time that works.
It is the time of year when everyone is trying to get vacation time used up, and unfortunately, sickness happens as well. Transit this week had some of both making scheduling tough. What started out for me as filling in as a driver for a few hours turned into most of a day. Most riders are understanding when we have days like this, but it still makes it rough on everyone. With the occasional traffic snafu and a random train, we still managed to get riders to and from destinations like work, doctors appointments, and shopping throughout the day. One portion of the day I had a rider who knew they would have to ride with me for a while prior to getting home but could get on the bus earlier by doing so. In the end, they got home with the extra ride time about ten minutes later than waiting on the next open slot. Drivers, thank you for all your hard work. It is noticed by more than just the passengers. Dispatch, thank you for tackling what seems like the continuous ring of the phone to get riders scheduled. Passengers, thank you for your patience as we work to improve Seymour Transit.
Time to get back to Laford Luccock’s quote, "No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it." To shorten up, what I believe he was trying to say is it takes a team. A team to understand and try to offer suggestions to lessen the impact of SEA-1. A team of pastors that meet each week and reached out to a member of my team to schedule a visit. A team of drivers and dispatchers to provide 59 hours a week of over 1700 possible rides for passengers of Seymour Transit. From the Santa Tour to the O’brien Street project, it takes several teams all working for the same end goal: a better community today, tomorrow, and in years to come. To everyone on the Seymour team who does their piece, big and small, thank you for all you do. It is noticed on a regular basis even if sometimes it goes unmentioned.