POSTED TO THE SITE MAY 18, 2001 @ 7:30PM

Reflections on why I accepted this position, and my relationship with Nelson Thibodeaux…………..

I first met Nelson Thibodeaux almost 20 years ago. While serving on the Board of Directors of the Colleyville Area Chamber of Commerce in the early 1980's, I, along with the rest of the board, was invited to attend the Grapevine Opry as the guest of Nelson, owner of the Opry. Bob Cox, a fellow board member, was active in the Opry and wanted to acquaint us with it and Nelson. Having grown up in Grapevine I was already acquainted with the Opry and its many variations up to that point in time. I had attended movies at the old Palace Theater as a youngster, which evolved into the Opry, and which has now evolved back into the Palace. My first impression of Nelson at that time was that he was……..interesting.

After that initial meeting I had no contact with Nelson for almost 15 years. During my husband's most recent tenure as Mayor of Colleyville, I encountered Nelson again. He was elected to the Colleyville City Council in 1998, defeating the candidate I supported. Early in his council service I had occasion to call him "arrogant, petty, mean-spirited and elitist" (along with the rest of the council at that time) at the end of one of the council meetings. I became something of a folk hero around town after this was picked up by Dave Lieber and repeated in his column in the Fort Worth Star Telegram.

Later that year I had an opportunity to ride in the Grapevine Christmas Parade with Nelson, his wife Jamie, and daughter Raven. The Colleyville City Council was supposed to ride in the parade on a Colleyville fire truck. I went in my husband's place and took my daughter-in-law and two grandsons (who to this day consider this event one of the highlights of their young lives). Due to the fact that it was freezing cold and pouring down rain my family and Nelson's family were the only ones who showed up. I would have backed out myself, but you don't tell two young boys they are going to ride down Main Street on top of a fire truck and then tell them they're not.

Something wonderful happened that night. I saw another dimension of a man I had only known superficially. I saw a man and his family participate in an event out of pride and commitment to their community. I saw a man I had formerly not cared for at all treat my family with courtesy and respect. My daughter-in-law had performed in Nelson's Opry when she was young and they shared stories and memories of that experience. I left the parade soaked to the bone, but with a different perception of Nelson Thibodeaux. He had not changed that night - I had.

I have since seen Nelson do something most people find impossible. I've seen him admit his mistakes and apologize to people when proven wrong. I've seen him make friends with people who shared my initial opinion of him. And I've seen him and his wife work as hard as anyone I've encountered in 25 years of living in Colleyville to make our community a better place. Those are some of the reasons I chose to accept his offer to become editor of LocalNewsOnly.com.

Years ago we used to sit around and bemoan the fact that we had no local newspaper. We longed for a way to communicate better with residents (and this was when we had less than half the population we do now). Well, we've had several since then, some better than others. And we have better service from the Dallas and Fort Worth papers now than we used to. But the concept of an on-line newspaper with the potential to provide residents with news immediately intrigues me. I'm still living in the dark ages when it comes to understanding the technology that allows this, but the opportunities it presents are exciting.

Along with those opportunities comes responsibility. Our challenge is to present the news in a manner that earns your respect and trust. My personal philosophy is that news organizations should educate rather than manipulate. There should be a clear distinction between reporting news and editorializing. The power of the media to influence public opinion can be and often is misused. LocalNewsOnly.com is designed to allow you, the reader, access to this power through letters to the editor and local columns. Your participation in this unique method of news generation and circulation will determine its success. I've logged in, signed on, and look forward to being part of the adventure.

Linda is a Graduate of Grapevine High School with an M.B.A. in Business Administration/Public Administration and a B.B.A. in Finance

Her Public Service has included:

Councilperson, 1989 - 1993

Mayor Pro Tem, 1992 - 1993

Planning and Zoning Commission, 1982 - 1984

Corridor Study Committee Chairman, 1994

Community Center Committee, 1993 - 1999

Sesquicentennial Committee Chairman, 1985 - 1986

UNITED WAY

1993 - 1997 Steering Committee, United Way - Northeast

Member, Metropolitan Tarrant County United Way Community Investment Division Board

Chairman, Family Focus Committee

THE PARENTING CENTER

1997 - 2000

Member, Board of Directors

Member, Executive Board

Chairmen, Public Relations Committee

Grapevine Relief and Community Exchange (GRACE)

1998 - 2001

Member, Board of Directors

Chairman, Evaluation Committee

COLLEYVILLE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Board of Directors, 1984 - 1986First Vice President, 1982 - 1983

Outstanding Service Award, 1984

Community Service Award, 1988

Co-founder/chair, Leadership Colleyville

GRAPEVINE-COLLEYVILLE I.S.D.

Bransford Elementary Excellence Committee, 1993 - 1995

Citizens Advisory Committee, 1986 - 1987

JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT

Project Business Volunteer Teacher, 1987 - 1989

FIRST ASSEMBLY OF GOD COLLEYVILLE

Childrens Volunteer Coordinator, 2000-2001

Women's Ministry Board, 1997-1999

Linda Newton