Community’s cracks run deeper than concrete

The other day, while riding my bike through my neighborhood, I noticed a large crack in the sidewalk. A few days later, I rode by again and saw it had already been repaired. I was glad to see it fixed. But it also made me think about the many other “cracks” in our community that are not being repaired.

Every year, taxpayer money is budgeted to maintain sidewalks, roads, medians and landscaping. We understand these things matter. But every day we also see human beings sitting on those same sidewalks without homes, without stability and often without hope.

realize repairing sidewalks is much simpler than addressing homelessness, mental illness, addiction and despair. Concrete does not suffer from trauma or loneliness. Still, many citizens are left wondering why visible human suffering so often seems to receive less urgency than damaged concrete.

As a taxpayer, I care far more about a person without a home than I do about a crack in a sidewalk. A compassionate society should be judged less by how quickly it repairs concrete and more by how quickly it responds to human suffering.

— Patty Matthews, Orlando

Patty Matthews is a volunteer with iDignity, which assists homeless people in need of identification.

Byron Donalds’ story resonate

I believe Congressman Byron Donalds will quite likely be our state’s first Black governor – a high time for history. Why has his career been so meteoric? In part, it’s because of the quality and sincerity of his storytelling. Storytelling moves mountains, after all. And drains swamps.

One question voters may ask of Donalds, quoting Scottish evangelist Oswald Chambers, is “What is the motive behind the motive?” It’s relevant, as we head into elections and people prepare to decide for whom they’ll vote. But how to tell?
One of the great indicators of what’s really happening is through the candidate’s quality of storytelling. Is there a palpable authenticity that rings true? Who is the hero of the candidate’s story? If they cast themselves as the hero, run away like a New Smyrna Beach cool breeze.

Is there a distinctly human element that is promising hope for all? Rule of thumb: feeling goosebumps after a speech is always the gold standard, yet can be hard to come by. Are voters telling pals, with enthusiasm, about the merits of a newly decided upon candidate — or telling a story about the story you just heard from them?

People sift for a purpose beyond self in the candidate. For example, George Washington loved returning to tend to his farm after serving his country. He turned down an offer from England to be Prime Minister of North America. He was in it for the right reason.

At a recent event in Windermere, Donalds and his wife, Ericka, spoke glowingly with stories of gratitude of their very first supporters when he decided to seek public office. The room resonated. Sincerity shined.

— John L. Evans, Winter Park

DeSantis’ reversal of fortune

Now that Gov. Ron DeSantis is pushing a wealth tax for second homes in Florida, going as far as saying Palm Beach is sitting on a goldmine, is Fox News going to have wall-to-wall coverage about how DeSantis is a socialist and going to crash the American economy? Or is that kind of coverage reserved for a certain type of people?

— Brad Papas, Winter Garden

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