Walking through the airport in
February I saw one of the Foundation for a Better Life advertisements that
quickly lift me up on a flood of positive emotions about inspiration, perseverance,
unity and courage.
These advertisements are so
powerful and well done that I cannot help but be inspired by photos of the
Dalai Lama (Soul), Abraham Lincoln (Persistence) and Bethany Hamilton (Rising
Above). Even the Mona Lisa (Smile) makes me smile.
If you are anything like me,
these positive feelings come with a bit of comparison and soul searching. How
have I made a difference?
Let’s be real, comparing
oneself to the likes of Mother Theresa (Compassion) or Nelson Mandela
(Inspiration) is a no-win proposition and just downright depressing. So much
for the uplifting advertisement ... can I just go back to bed now?
But the truth is, we all can
make a significant difference in our own way and the easiest place to start is
close to home.
One opportunity right here is
the Marin County Civil Grand Jury. Empowered by the judicial system, the civil
grand jury is Marin County’s only independent watchdog of government agencies,
services and tax dollar expenditures. Composed of 19 citizen volunteers, it investigates
and monitors the performance of county, city and local governing entities and
recommends ways to do things better.
So, what has the grand jury
actually done for you lately? Just to name a few, during the past two years the
grand jury has conducted investigations and made recommendations resulting in:
• Significantly improved recycling by Marin County government
including the Civic Center and county jail (environment).
• Improvements to retirement health care benefits administration by
the county, municipalities, and other agencies (financial viability, retirement
benefits).
• Use of body and police car cameras by many police agencies in
Marin County (resident and police safety).
• Reduced tax dollars spent via Board of Supervisors discretionary
fund, reduced size of any individual grants, enhanced application process such
that all eligible organizations can apply for funds (good government).
• Department of Health and Human Services allocated additional
$150,000 for recruitment of foster parents and agreed to budget sufficient
funds to provide foster children with therapy by licensed clinical
psychologists or therapists (Health and Human Services).
• The Board of Supervisors dedicating $100,000 to Aging and Adult
Services to draft and execute a plan known as the Aging Action Initiative
(Health and Human Services).
These issues and others were of
interest to the grand juries of the past two years. You may have different
passions as related to Marin. Grand jury investigations are initiated by the
jurors or suggested by citizens and jurors focus on specific areas of interest
to them that improve the quality of life in Marin for all of its residents.
Back to Mother Theresa — the
scale of your impact may be smaller, but incremental change makes the world go
around; we all have a role for better or worse.
So be inspired (Alex’s Lemonade
Stand) to volunteer (Shifra Mincer) and become a steward (Jane Goodall) of the
county we love. Never heard of Alex or Shifra? Me either, that’s the point.
Applications for the 2015-16
term are due by April 20 and available by contacting Patti Church, grand jury
aide, at 415-473-6132 or online http://www.marincounty.org/depts/gj/how-do-i-apply
April
1, 2015
Marin
Independent Journal
By Sarah Loughran. She served on the
2013-14 Marin County Civil Grand Jury
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