were armed, but the Sheriff had a
reputation for never having to use his weapon. We later visited
with Mr. Moore and were glad we got the chance to catch some of
that wonderful local institutional memory in person.
And then there were half a dozen instances
where we wish we’d had a recording to document other
parts of the quest for essential data in the Commonwealth. For
example, we ask for square mileage for each locality. This is
still problematic to this day. But in the early days,
we’d have people tell us they didn’t know, but
would measure it and get back to us. We’re still not sure
what they intended to use to measure with.
The classic Virginia Review Directory
story is one we hear more often than others. It’s when we
are trying to call a state agency or secretariat to get
information, and they start reading from a source that sounds very
familiar. We eventually determine they are reading from a past
edition of the Virginia Review Directory. It’s nice to
know we are providing a service.
Another key to learning all I could about
government came when we met then Isle of Wight Administrator Myles
Standish and his wife
Donna for high tea at the Homestead. It
was during one of the November Virginia Association of Counties
meetings. Myles suggested we do an article or series of
articles on the late Bob House, a man who had served as city manager
for about every Tidewater city until his untimely death in an airplane
crash. Bob House had created a system for mentoring and fostering
leadership skills in younger individuals. Many of those under
his tutelage that later became known as the “Bob House
School of Government,” went on to achieve great
accomplishments in their own careers in public administration.
From there we met key folks to our early
education and personal development like (now retired) Colonial
Heights Manager Robert E. “Bob” Taylor, and
Hopewell City Manager Clint Strong. They were early inductees
into the Bob House School of Government. They in turn mentored
and helped inspire other generations of managers like Myles
Standish and his peers Augusta County Administrator Pat
Coffield (past VLGMA President), and Orange County
Administrator Bill Rolfe. They in turn
