08/06/2025
Op-Ed by Scott Brooks
The Time Is Now: Why Young People Must Lead Locally in Communities Like Waxahachie
There is a quiet revolution waiting to happen in communities like Waxahachie, and it won’t arrive on social media feeds or national news broadcasts. It won’t come in the form of sweeping federal reforms or grandstanding presidential candidates. It will come, if it comes at all, from the brave, humble decision of a 28-year-old accountant deciding to file to run for city council, from a young mother of two throwing her name in for the local school board, or from a recent college graduate choosing public meetings over private comfort.
It’s time for Waxahachie’s young adults to step up - not later, not someday, but now.
Let’s start with this premise - there are already young men and women in our town who have stepped into the fray. They sit on local boards, attend budget meetings, and navigate the bureaucracy of municipal life … not for power or prestige, but because they care. Despite my recent rants regarding some of them, nothing will change the fact that they deserve our gratitude. They’ve taken time they could spend elsewhere - raising children, building careers, enjoying the fleeting freedoms of youth - and instead offered it in service to the rest of us. That, in itself, is a civic virtue too often overlooked.
But the reality is this: we need more of them.
Local governance may lack glamour, but it is where democracy is most pure. It is in the city council chambers, not the Capitol rotunda, where potholes are fixed, where parks are preserved or paved over, where police and fire departments are funded (or not), and where children’s futures are shaped by school board policy. These decisions are not theoretical. They are not abstractions. They are immediate, intimate, and intensely personal.
Yet too often, these seats of influence go uncontested, or worse, are filled by default. In many elections, no one under 40 is on the ballot. In others, voter turnout among young adults is so sparse it wouldn’t take much more than a family reunion to swing a result. And while older generations, many of whom have served with distinction, bring valuable perspective, the absence of younger voices means we’re governing a future that many of the decision-makers will not live long enough to experience.
This is not a call to overthrow the old guard; rather, it’s an invitation to join the orchestra. To add new instruments, new harmonies, new rhythms. The energy, the urgency, the innovation of youth, paired with the wisdom and institutional memory of older leaders, can make our local governance truly reflective of the community it serves.
As for the plethora of excuses not to run, let’s consider the most used. They are familiar and, to a degree, understandable.
“I’m too busy.” Yes, you are. We all are. But some things are worth rearranging the calendar to do. If you can manage 10 hours a week for your fantasy football league or binge three seasons of a Netflix show in a weekend, you can carve out time to review a city budget or attend a school board meeting.
“I’m not qualified.” Neither was George Washington before he became commander of the Continental Army. Neither are half the people currently holding office … though they’d never admit it. Local government is not quantum physics. It takes curiosity, commitment, and a willingness to ask questions. Everything else can be learned.
“I hate politics.” Good. That’s precisely why you should run. The people who love politics too much are often the least suited to govern. Those who approach it with skepticism, humility, and a genuine desire to serve are the ones who restore public trust.
In a place like Waxahachie, this kind of participation matters even more. We are not a faceless metropolis. We are a community of neighbors. Our kids attend the same schools. We see each other at the grocery store, in church pews, on football Friday nights. When someone steps up to lead here, they are not dealing with concepts, they are making decisions that affect their classmates, their coworkers, their cousins.
Consider this: running for office isn’t just about winning. It’s about starting a conversation. About putting issues on the table that no one else will. About reminding your fellow citizens that government is not a spectator sport. Even a losing candidate can shape the debate and shift the priorities of those in power.
So to the young teacher who sees firsthand how policy affects the classroom, I say run. To the entrepreneur frustrated by city red tape, I say run. To the nurse who understands the cracks in our healthcare access, I say run. To the citizen who simply wants to serve with integrity, I say run.
You will make mistakes. You will be criticized. A Sun op-ed aimed at you will make you angry. You will lose sleep and probably, at some point, lose your temper. But you will also gain something priceless: the knowledge that you did not sit idly by while your community needed you. If you’re waiting for permission, this is it. If you’re waiting for the perfect time, it will never come. If you’re waiting for someone else, they may be waiting on you. So let the old political joke that says, “Don’t vote, it only encourages them” die. Instead, run for office.
It just might make the difference we need.
Scott Brooks is publisher of The Waxahachie Sun and may be contacted at [email protected]. Scott’s national columns can be found on Substack.com/Grit & Good News. Scott can also be seen every Tuesday and Thursday from noon-1pm on the Sun's 'Grit and Good News’ livestream show. The show airs live on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitch. You can also see video segments on TikTok under the 'Grit&GoodNews' brand.
