Remember Peter Jennings? –From ABC Nightly News. He was born in our neighboring Toronto, On This Day in 1936. We miss him. I remember he was so reverend in his 24-7 coverage of 9-11, only six years ago.
The 9-11 Ceremony for Erie County in its sixth year remembrance comes soon, and can remember being in our County Executive’s office two years ago preparing elements of the ceremony when news of Katrina struck.
It was On This Day that Katrina hit, and the Erie County County Executive’s office was fully jammed with support calls for days thereafter, seeking WNY temporary housing and help ideals and answers from possible Western New York holds for the thousands of refugees and needs at hand. Not one word of their focus and help even sought to make it to the papers, but that was what was being done full time in Joel Giambra’s Executive office.
I became so impressed with Joel Giambra that day, amidst all his otherwise press. There’s a lot of political heat for the man because of situations with legislative voting awkwardness in a shambles of efforts he originally foresaw to engage the county and city into unified government. That will now be left to future foreseers to ignite again. Joel knows he screwed up in the political game of the fight to glue city and county, but he’s never asked to be exonerated, or forgiven, or excused. He’s been a stalwart and almost literal stake-holden and fire swept visage of glory under the heat.
Joel Giambra stands tall and works hard and asks no forgiveness, and gives no excuses. The future is bound to rediscover his efforts at a tied county-city government that would save millions, but council members at his try failed to let go of selfishness to see it being.
Joel’s a unique man. He’s a hard working human with a job, and there’s literally no politics about him any more. He gave that up. He refuses it. He’d rather be a tried-true but fallen neighbor hated than a fake and bloated politician beloved. He does his job, knowing the fate of ill-willed winds that swirl about him. That’s heroism.
And that’s an enigma and a blessing we should all be asking ourselves about…about a tough man doing a tough job, relentlessly, against tides of overkill innuendo and blame of what is all our shared shame with the legislative members who selfishly stole the thunder of needed good change. He tried. He keeps trying. The balance of the community puts little time in but for to complain.
It was On This Day that he swayed County government’s typical actions and asked his staff to spend however many days listening to lines coming in from New Orleans and make action and repair. And not one call to alert the press. Not one. Joel just did it. It was on his number one list to lend the strengths of Erie County to the weaknesses and needs of New Orleans.
I asked his secretary what it was all about, and she said: “We are so rich here, really, no earthquakes, no floods, and no forest fires.” She added “We can help. We are here to give whatever resources our community can to help our American community when in need.”
I asked her: “Is that your job?”
She said: “That’s pretty much it”
The devastation needed our help. It killed 1,836 humans and caused over $115 billion in damage, and still is counting in aftermath health issues.
I was proud of Erie County that day we sought to help, and proud of a stalwart but publicly berated Joel Giambra; in the face of his consternation, he was and remains a very strong leader that I am proud to call ours. The man has deep character. We all have a new vote to make this November, but never let it be said Joel Giambra spent even one day in his office not working hard for all of us, from his heart.
On This Day, Part Two:
And…on a totally other note from time past…it’s time to vent away a bit…time to mountain climb.
My vivacious Buffalo cousin Tom Vossler (son of Erie County Conservative Chairman George Vossler-credited to help usher in Mayor Griffin’s first term) and I climbed the famed Mount Washington at 19 years old each, not once, but twice, on the same day.
Mount Washington is the highest mountain in the east of the USA, and it records winds of over 238 miles per hour. Seasons change from summer to winter from bottom to top. More people have died on this mountain than any other on Earth.
Cousin Tom insisted that after we climbed it in one day, we climb it again later that day, and plan to sleep in our bags at the top of it. So we did. The second time I felt every bitty bone and muscle in my body, but we dearly made it, and swam that night near the Land of the Lakes near atop Mount Washington.
But imagine the first time in that mid-day when we arrived at the peak; it was startling for me-an old lady in a print dress filling a rather tired looking obese body sat licking an ice cream cone. What?!-I thought? – It so happens, I was to learn, that there’s a rail that comes from the opposite side of the mountain.
And so, it was, I learned, that On This Day, in 1869, the Mount Washington Cog Railway was the world’s first mountain-climbing cog railway (rack-and-pinion railway) with a Marsh rack system. Wikipedia says: “It climbs Mount Washington in New Hampshire, USA. The railway ascends the mountain beginning at an elevation of approximately 2700 feet above sea level and ending at the summit of Mt. Washington at an elevation of 6288 feet.
It is the second steepest rack railway in the world with an average grade of over 25% and a maximum grade of 37.41%. The railway is still in operation as of 2007, using steam locomotives as it always has (most dating to the 19th century, though an experimental diesel was used between 1976 and 1981). The train ascends the mountain at 2.8 mph and descends at 4.6 mph. It takes approximately 65 minutes to ascend and 40 minutes to descend. The railway is approximately 3 miles long.”
Life’s a good long climb anyway. Enjoy, and keep climbing. And that’s the news today from On This Day from Buffalo.