Monday, November 1, 2010

Keeping in Touch

Greg Moore, editor of the Denver Post, visited the Auditor's Office recently. Our staff reviewed the many changes and improvements we have made to the Auditor's Office permitted by the passage of charter changes to our office. We talked about the charter changes enabling our office to do performance audits, and the many benefits from an independent audit committee. We shared with Moore the highlights of our Audit Plan for 2011. Readers can review the plan on our website. I hope you will check it out. Let me know what you think of the plan.

Because Greg Moore came to The Denver Post from many years of service at The Boston Globe, our conversation invariably turns to the rough and tumble but always interesting and entertaining politics of Boston. Moore repeatedly tells a favorite story about former Boston mayor, Ray Flynn when we have met with him. Flynn was very outgoing and the word on the street said that Mayor Flynn had personally met a large percentage of the people of Boston. So The Globe commissioned a survey to see how many people had actually met and talked with the mayor. The report reported to the Globe that over 90% of the people of Boston had personally met Flynn.

People often ask me why I go to so many events, visit neighborhood meetings, attend religious festivals, visit with neighbors in our city's many different coffee shops, lunch at senior centers and synagogues, and our city's recreation centers. Last year during Librarian Appreciation Week, I visited every Denver Public Library, and delivered flowers and cookies to city librarians.

At the end of Moore's visit to our office, I told him I am trying to match or better Mayor Flynn's percentage of personal contact with Denver residents.

To me that's what public service is all about: being accessible and available, trying to keep in touch to let people know what the auditor's office is trying to do to bring accountability and improved performance among our city agencies. I appreciate hearing what Denverites tell me is going on with them and our city government.

Like Mayor Ray Flynn and Tip O'Neill, I look forward to visiting with you in one of Denver's many great neighborhoods.

2 comments:

Mary Lou Egan said...

Have met you at the Holy Rosary pancake breakfast, functions at Riverside Cemetery, Regis tour of Slavic churches, the Orthodox food festival and several funerals for folks in the Globeville neighborhood. I thought you might be twins to get to so many events and I appreciate your being there.

colleenwordsmith said...

Thank you for visiting my "Glass Halo" book-signing at Gallagher Books. I was honored to meet you; and you do remind me just a wee bit of Tip O'Neill.