I NEVER endorse, but . . . .

One night in December 1997 after walking away from my teaching job that spring, I attended a birthday party for one of my former colleagues. With diehard conviction, I announced to the partygoers, who were mostly staff members at Sandpoint High School, that "I'll NEVER return to teaching."

Two days later, the principal called up and offered me an English teaching position. It would be coming open at semester time because another teacher, weary of the attitudes she was seeing in school, had resigned, effective the end of the semester.

I was flattered that someone would want me back after I'd resigned in disgust just months before. I was freelance writing at the time, doing okay financially, but the idea of teaching English with no publication deadlines and having a guaranteed paycheck each month sounded appealing.

The next day I called the principal and accepted the job. It was the best thing that ever happened in my career because I returned to the vocation I had loved for nearly thirty years and went on to enjoy five of the most challenging but satisfying years of teaching ever. I left teaching the next time around proud and fulfilled rather than bitter and disappointed.

That about-face experience also dramatically illustrated the lesson to me about never saying "never." Over the years, I've remained steadfast in another position: never show your hand in a political arena. I seldom sign petitions. I will not endorse candidates, and I always explain that I prefer to remain neutral. I also often support candidates privately with small donations and moral support whenever they appear to be in need.

This stance offers me the opportunity to get along with just about anyone I meet on the street. It's also a safety net for not having to commit or having to participate in arenas where I don't feel comfortable. Besides, I've always preferred the flexibility of supporting individuals rather than party labels.

Most of the time, I have no regrets. I can, however, think of one exception where I sat on my hands in anguish while watching my candidate subjected to blatantly unfair press and to underhanded, mean methods of political crucifixion. It was painful, yet I kept my public mouth shut and supported this candidate quietly as best I could behind the scenes. I shall never forget the mean-spirited tactics of that particular election and the toll it took on my friend. I still feel like I should have made an exception to my rule of NEVER supporting candidates publicly.

I don't want to make that same mistake twice. I cannot sit back and watch another honorable and dedicated person pushed through the political meat grinder. Therefore, this year, after much deep thought, I'm breaking my rule. I hope this will be a one-time exception to my fierce neutrality.

I enthusiastically support Judie Conlan for Bonner County Assessor. Readers need only to look at my posting "Seven More Days" of two days ago to read many of the reasons I support Judie.

While writing the second half of that piece, I was thinking of her and a handful of other candidates---both Democrat and Republican---who, I believe, have kept their campaigns honorable and who have served the public to the best of their ability, considering the individual circumstances. Judie, while defending herself and her staff the past few months, has not resorted to the low blows that have been hurled her way by other candidates, by her colleagues in public office and by certain media outlets.

I ask voters to consider one question. If Judie could work capably for 30 years for Bonner County without so much as a whimper of criticism until this past year, why has she suddenly turned into the scapegoat for all that's wrong with Bonner County? I submit that virtually anyone in the county assessor's office in the midst of the past couple of years of sky-high real estate deals causing sky high tax assessments would be dealing with the same daunting challenges that Judie has faced.

I think of Judie's situation in the county assessor's office this past year very much like situations I faced during my teaching days. Occasionally, at the beginning of some new school years, an unexpected huge enrollment led to overflowing classrooms, frantic changes in class schedules, kids transferring in and out of class, new classes being added and, overall general uproar for the first three weeks of school.

Had we been in the public fish bowl, it may not have looked like we were at our best, but we did our best to deal with the early-year chaos. It was always a struggle to maintain any consistency in the classroom when schedule changes were occurring every day. If and when the needs were met, we'd settle into another year and do our best to get the job done.

I think a similar situation has happened in Bonner County. Who would have guessed three years ago that our community would be cast into the national spotlight and suddenly become the hot place to be? Who would have guessed three years ago that homes once selling for $50,000 would suddenly skyrocket to $250,000-plus?

It all happened so fast, and I submit that the county wasn't exactly ready to deal with the peripheral problems that accompanied the population influx and real estate boon we've seen here. In fairness, I also find that very understandable because I've dealt with surprises in my teaching career and have had to regroup after being caught offguard.

With that in mind, I think it's wrong to gang up---in an election year---and point the finger at one person in this atmosphere of unpredictabilty which we've all been experiencing. I also wonder if a new person assumes the office of Bonner County Assessor how long it's going to take to re-organize the staff and re-organize the system to fix what's broken and miraculously make all taxpayers happy.

With our growth come demands for infrastructure and county services. Are we going to have the means to pay all the bills if someone keeps reworking the system? Isn't it vitally important for all elected officials, more than ever, to respect each other and to work together to solve the problems we are facing? It seems that many people in the Courthouse have been playing the blame game for political gain.

I think Judie Conlan has been handed a raw deal during these past few months, and I am not alone. One of the reasons I'm writing this posting today is that I've received telephone calls from others who've known and admired Judie as long as I have-----and that's almost 50 years. We've appreciated her keen intelligence, her professionalism, her consistency and her willingness to communicate with constituents.

We've known her as a lifelong friend, and we've been proud of her as a public official who meticulously goes about her job doing what's right by state law and what's right for the citizenry of Bonner County. Contrary to some of the claims I've read in the paper, I believe Judie is an honest and solid leader who will always do what's right, even in the midst of unfair criticism.

I firmly believe Judie is undeserving of the negative light some people wish to cast her way, and I intend to vote for her because of my total confidence in her desire and ability to continue serving Bonner County---in the best of times and in the worst of times---as the professional she's always been.

When making choices for all candidates, I ask voters to look beyond the political rhetoric, to look beyond the money and to look more closely at proven ability, demonstrated public service and consistency in leadership. More than anything, look closely at how they conduct themselves in public and what means they use to get elected. I think that often tells a lot about what we can expect to see when these people assume office.

One last word: feel free to pass this message along to other voters who may not be aware of this blog. I'm proud to support Judie Conlan.