Councilwoman Vanek gets a warm send-off

April 16, 2004

Warm wishes and lots of accolades were given to outgoing Oakley City Council member Tinker Vanek on Monday evening as the first of the council's founding members said her goodbyes. When it came time last year for three councilmembers to make their decisions on whether or not to run for another four years, Vanek decided not to put her name on the ballot.

While many may worry about not seeing Vanek around to be an advocate for their organizations anymore, Vanek said that although she doesn't plan to attend the twice-monthly council meetings on a regular bases, she will continue to be the voice for the people in Oakley.

She explained that it has been a "long journey" but that the journey is far from over and Oakley still needs to continue to work hard to grow. The fact that Vanek was an integral part of that growth was evident by the plaques and awards presented to her at the council meeting.

Proclamations and general well wishes were delivered from county Supervisor Federal Glover, State Sen. Tom Torlakson, Assemblyman Guy Houston, and Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher. All of whom credit Vanek for her dedication to the economic development of the community, the Oakley schools and to the help that she provided to launch Oakley as an outstanding young city.

There is no doubt that Vanek did all of that. As just another resident of Oakley it is hard to really even say enough about Vanek's dedication to her community. The amount of hours she has put in to help build Oakley cannot even be counted, except by maybe her family who undoubtedly missed her while she was away.

While Vanek will be sorely missed, councilmembers Pat Anderson and Brad Nix are continuing their service on the council after being re-elected by the voters last March. Both Nix and Anderson have served as previous mayors of Oakley, as Vanek also did. Anderson currently holds the position of vice-mayor.

At the council meeting on Monday evening, Anderson and Nix, as well as new council member Kevin Romick, took their oath of office. Anderson gave credit to the wonderful council that she will be serving with for the next four years and said that she is happy to be working with Romick, as he has always worked hard with the council in the past.

Nix said that it is going to be a pleasure to serve Oakley for four more years. Both Nix and Anderson referred to the long journey that has been the City Council of Oakley, and with the help of Mayor Carol Rios and Jeff Huffaker they have served to promote and build the city over its first five years.

As for Romick, he may be considered the new kid on the block, but he certainly has been very active over the past four years or so as well. He is definitely one of those who does more than just complain about things he might not like. When he came with a problem to the council, he didn't just stand by and say, "Now you fix it." He got involved. That involvement gave him a seat on the Oakley Planning Commission as the chairman, a seat he held until just this past week. His comment at the meeting on Monday was that he only hoped he could match the drive and determination of Vanek and that he felt had had large shoes to fill on the council.

Whatever the future brings for Oakley, the City Council will need all of the help and support it can get from its residents. It's never to late to get involved. The council will meets the second and forth Monday at 7:30 p.m. at the Delta Vista Middle School library.

Roni Gehlke's column on life in Oakley appears each week in the Brentwood News.

Distributed by the Contra Costa Times

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