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I have been proud to have served with County Manager John Link and can say that I was on the original team that interviewed him and decided to hire him. A good choice for he was and continues to be a highly ethical, professional, and moral human being. A first class act! I have been proud to have served with Register of Deeds Joyce Pearson and all of her hard working team. My hat goes off to our outstanding Sheriff Lindy Pendergrass and his professional men and women who do an outstanding job to protect all of us day in and day out. The Sheriff is constantly on the go and never asks others to do what he is not willing to do himself. He leads by example. A special thank you to County Attorney Geoff Gledhill for keeping us all out of those legal difficulties that other elected bodies usually find themselves in. Thanks to all County employees who work tirelessly an behalf of all the citizens of the County. Exciting days are ahead with the anticipated construction of a new addition to the existing new courthouse, a new animal shelter, a Durham Tech Satellite Campus in Hillsborough, a newly renovated Orange Enterprises program on a new campus, a new Central Orange Senior Center to be built onto the existing Triangle Sportsplex building in Hillsborough, the Robert and Pearl Seymour Senior Center currently under construction on County property on Homestead Road in Chapel Hill, the new Gravelly Middle School under construction for the Orange County School System and the new Carrbora High School under construction for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School System. These are exciting times and many wonderful things are happening for all of our citizens as a result of caring County Commissioners who allocate close to 50°~ of their County budget to the 2 public school systems and still have the vision and determination to safeguard both citizens and the land alike. Orange County was just this past week notified that it was a runner up in its category in national competition with its Lands Legacy Program as determined by the Trust for Public Land in conjunction with the National Association for Counties. I along with Commissioners Valerie Foushee and Moses Carey will accept the award on behalf of the County at the NACO Legislative Conference in Washington on March 4, 2006. Twenty years ago in Hillsborough, I announced that I was running for Orange County Commissioner and I have served in that capacity for 20 years. I am deeply thankful and humbled for having had the opportunity to serve the citizens of this County far all these years. I never led in any race and I always raised the smallest amount of money but I was always able to come in with the winning team and that was always the most important thing to me. With certainly no disrespect aimed at anyone on this Board, I would rather spend my future nights at home with my wife and my days watching my assistant district attorney daughter Christan practice her prosecutor skills in the courtroom. My campaign slogan in 1986 was "Truth, Honor, and Justice" and I still subscribe to that today. Tonight here in Chapel Hill I am announcing that I will not seek re-election as an Orange County Commissioner in 2006. I have traveled dawn a very long road over the past 20 years and now I want to go down some other less stressful paths that beckon me forth. Life is too short as I have said on many occasions and there are other things that I want to do while I am still able to da them. It is my time to move an along with County Manager John Link and Chapel Hill Tawn Manager Cal Horton. I wish you all and your families the very best of health and happiness in the years ahead. Keep up the good work and never forget your role as progressive, caring Democrats especially when other non-Democratic hopefuls come knocking on your door dressed in Democratic clothes.