Citizen heroes serve the truth

By: Anita Shelburne | Daily Progress
Published: March 18, 2010

Sometimes, civic duty requires more than simply voting.
Sometimes, citizens who step up to meet that challenge of “more” can become real civic heroes.
Such is the case with a Waynesboro couple who dug out information showing that their city treasurer’s office was in disarray. Their legwork paved the way for real reform.
The News Virginian, sister newspaper to The Daily Progress, then obtained further information showing that the treasurer had been cited in four straight evaluations for tardy accounting and sloppy record-keeping.
That prompted two write-in candidates to jump into the race for treasurer, doubling the field.
Then it was up to the voters. They ousted the incumbent, and installed a new treasurer.
And none of it might have happened without the insight and persistence of Phil and Ellen Winter.
The Winters were ideally suited for the job they undertook: They are both mathematicians.
The Winters and the newspaper also had another crucial assist: the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
The initial documents gathered by the couple to illustrate the treasurer’s incompetence were all public records, as were the state auditor’s reports specifying the treasurer’s mishandling of funds.
The Freedom of Information Act is not an ivory-tower law. It is a real and powerful tool in protecting the public — as the Waynesboro case shows. Public information gives everyday citizens the knowledge they need to hold their leaders accountable, and to make changes when changes are necessary.
Meanwhile, leaders often resist FOIA and try to weaken it. The Daily Progress and other media outlets continually monitor efforts to enfeeble the law, often by legislators voting to exempt people and situations from its strictures. Some modifications make sense; too often, however, they are not good for the public.
To the benefit of Waynesboro, public documents detailing the treasurer’s failure were obtainable.
And for their civic service, Phil and Ellen Winter have been recognized as third-place winners as national Sunshine Week Local Heroes.
Congratulations to the Winters — and may there always be a wealth of public information available to civic-minded citizens who are willing to dig deeper and do more.

Citizen heroes serve the truth

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