Miami Shores Village News – April 2010

Sad news for many here in Miami Shores – Vice Mayor Shockey resigns! This doesn’t mean he won’t be back.  Here is the latest from Donald Shockey himself.  Either way, we wish him the best of luck in his travels and hope to see him back soon.

Dear Miami Shores Village Residents and Friends,

It was with much regret that I recently resigned as Vice Mayor of Miami Shores Village.   As some of you know, I was laid off from my job as an urban planner in early 2009.  When I ran for Village Council last April, I was optimistic that I would be able to find a job in the Miami area within a reasonable amount of time.  I did not anticipate that the economic recession would be as severe and long lasting as it turned out to be.

Despite an exhaustive search effort, I was unable to find a job in the area by the end of 2009.   I recently was offered and accepted a position working to support international stabilization and redevelopment efforts in Afghanistan.   After spending some time in Afghanistan to make sure the position was going to work out, I resigned from the Village Council last week.   I know that those of you who worked hard last spring to elect a progressive new voice to the Village Council will be disappointed by this news,  but many people have had to make similar or more difficult choices in these challenging times.   The Council will be considering how to fill my seat at their meeting on April 20th.

I want to sincerely thank everyone who worked so hard last April to help me win election to the Village Council.  It was a wonderful experience to meet and get to know so many like-minded people in the Village.   I hope you’ll stay involved in the continuing work to   improve our NE 2nd Ave. downtown district, make our community greener, and all the other efforts to keep Miami Shores Village such a great place to call home.

I hope to resume being actively involved when I return home next year. For now I’ll continue following all the Village activities and developments from afar.   I wish all of you the best in the rest of 2010.

Sincerely,

Donald Shockey