Would you invest in yourself?

Like many of you out there, I was recently asked to write my thoughts on the school bond proposal.

The opinion piece I submitted seemed to resonate with like-minded individuals, fellow members of the community that fall into my demographic. Parents logically want better for their children.

However, as we inundate the community with the rallying cry for the students, I want to make sure people understand the entirety of the issue.

For all of you without a direct link to Greene County’s education system I ask this question, “Would you invest in yourself?”

Are you worth investing in?

Regardless of your current station in life, my answer is emphatically “yes.” I believe there is a unique and special quality of life available here in Greene County. I recognize and appreciate the present, and I choose to invest in the future to preserve the culture that is Greene County.

I did not grow up in this community. I chose this community.

This bond issue is a matter of investing in all of us, and like any investment, financial or otherwise, I expect this one to produce a return.

Let’s look at sample demographics that may not feel they have a vested interest in this debate. If you don’t have children or grandchildren, if you work in another town, maybe you’re retired? Maybe you are unemployed, or come to town only for necessities. I don’t know where you fall in your life/career path, but I want better for you.

For realization of that outcome, for your goals to come to fruition, you must vote Yes.

 Why? Let me explain. It begins with a hypothetical discussion with those who are inclined to vote “no.”

How will this benefit you?

This is the crux of the issue, and a valid question for those opposed.

As proponents like myself promise “better” for the future, we’d be remiss if we don’t define what better means for you and why this bond is, at its core, about investing in yourself.

In a not so distant future, I want you to be able to have access to a vibrant community. When you need a talented and modern labor pool to hire from, I want you to have better.

When technology advances, when energy options evolve, I want you to have better.

When farming becomes a virtual and software-driven way of life, and knowledge of those systems is critical to profitability, I want you to have better.

When cancer strikes a loved one, when your transmission fails, when virtual reality allows for in-person conversations with family and friends a thousand miles away, I want you to have better.

None of this discussion is meant to insinuate we don’t have something special now. Conversely, that is precisely my point. “Better” means preserving who we are, and saying to our neighbor, “I appreciate you.”

I want to buy my tires at Wahl-McAtee, I want to buy my wife flowers at Fudges, preserve our family in pictures at Meythaler’s, buy tools at Ace, root beer floats at A&W, ice cream at DQ, lunch at Breadeux, supper at Peony and a beer at Doc’s.

I want to spend Fridays at 209 Main, buy calf feed at Bomgaars and turn my wife loose at the Printer’s Box and More Time.

I want Raccoon Valley Lawncare to tell me how to landscape, and please get rid of my dandelions. I want to spend my fall days at Deal’s Orchard and my Friday nights at football games.

The list goes on and on, there are great businesses and a wonderful community that needs to be here tomorrow, as well as 20 years from now. I’m voting Yes to preserve these things that are uniquely Greene County.

Like you, I think they are worth the investment. I want their success to be sustained and improved, and I want the same for you.

Are you worth the investment? That’s a question only you can answer at the ballot box.

Bryce Martin is CEO of Choice Genetics USA based in West Des Moines. He and his wife Valerie moved to Greene County in 2005.