On April 15, the good people of Murfreesboro have the opportunity, or, as I see it, the “duty as an American,” to go vote. Among other offices, we will elect three city council members. One of these candidates is incumbent Madelyn Scales Harris. She is a lifelong resident of the city of Murfreesboro, attended local public schools and graduated from Middle Tennessee State University (with three years at Memphis State). She has also done post-graduate work at MTSU, and comes from a rich background of community service, with both her mother and her father having served on the city council. Scales’ father Robert “T-90” Scales, (or T-Niney) was a pioneer in local politics, being the first black person ever elected in the South at-large since reconstruction. His election set a precedent not only in Murfreesboro, but throughout the South. As Ms. Scales Harris put it, “I come from a family of politicians. My father, Robert “T-90” Scales was elected to the city council in 1965. He was the first black person to serve on the city council; he served 24 years on the council, 16 as vice mayor. He suffered a heart attack one evening after a city council meeting. Afterwards my mother ran and served a term.” Now Ms. Scales Harris is the third member of her family to serve on the city council and plans to continue the legacy that her father started. “It is in the spirit of my mother and father that I serve, first God, my family and the citizens of Murfreesboro. My dad always said, ‘Never make a promise you can’t keep.’ I try very hard to keep that motto.” When Ms. Scales Harris was asked what have been the greatest accomplishments of her first term, she responded, “I hope since I was elected in April of 2010, I have shown the people that I care about them and keep my promises. I want to make a difference in the lives of all our citizens, maintain a good quality of life for all. I have fought for the council to be fair to everybody and I have stood up for the city employees. When I was running for election the first time, I went around the city and talked to as many people as I could. I visited with firefighters, police officers, employees at the Street Department along with many other city employees. I told them, ‘I can’t go into this election, making promises I can’t keep, but I want to know what I can do to make your lives better.’ Everyone’s priority concern was wages and their cost of living. When I got on the council, I researched it and found that we had the money and I fought for the city workers to get a raise. All four years I have been on the council, city employees received a raise. It was a priority to them and it was a priority to me. Part-time employees also received a raise and many of them had never received a raise before. During the Christmas holiday, they received a Christmas present from the city for the first time. I want to help these people because, when I’m home and safe, these people are out working and risking their lives. At three in the morning, they may be clearing the streets of snow and ice, sometimes wearing pounds of safety gear, working long hours to protect our lives and property. So it was important to help them as much as possible. I tried to bring equality to the job, [it] didn’t always work, I was voted down on some things, but I’m just one vote. I never stopped fighting for the city employees. “I think I can make an even bigger difference in my second term,” she continued. “I want to continue to be part of the growth of Murfreesboro, so future generations can have the same experiences. I hope I’ve gotten a start on making a difference, I’ve helped change the mindset of some people and got some things done that helped.” There has been much growth in the city: with a veritable population explosion in Rutherford County, the community of Murfreesboro alone has reached approximately 115,000 people. “One thing that has brought us so much growth is the commodities of Murfreesboro, small businesses, the schools, state of the art hospital and medical complex, a great park system, a chamber of commerce that is bringing industry, jobs and tax dollars to this area,” Scales Harris said. “We have the No. 1 university in the state. The city has kept up with all the infrastructure growth of the city. Sure, we have growing pains, but we have been able to keep up with the growth while maintaining a good quality of life. We have been able to do all of this and have not raised property taxes in over 15 years. . . . All of this growth is important, but we cannot forget the small business owners. They are the foundation of this city and we can’t let big businesses push them out. We have to sustain the mom-and-pop businesses; a good example of that is the public square. We have to preserve our history and the square is the center of small business and history in Murfreesboro.” When Ms. Scales Harris was asked why she has such a desire to serve, she responded, “I’m running because I love Murfreesboro and I believe we serve God by serving our fellow man and the blessed of us must help the rest of us. I am blessed and privileged to be part of a legacy of service right here. We have our problems, just like anywhere else, but all in all, Murfreesboro is a great place to live and raise a family. I hear it all the time, from visitors and when I travel. As my dad used to say, you can tell someone all day long that you love them, but until you show them, it doesn’t mean a thing. I serve because I love my city and I try to show my love by listening to the citizens, speaking up for them and following through. I have always been careful to not make promises I couldn’t keep, and when I go to bed at night, I always want to think I’ve done the best that I can do.” Ms. Scales Harris added on a somber note, “I wasn’t able to give as much time as I would have liked to in the last year, because my mom was sick and I spent a great deal of time taking care of her. We did a lot in my first term, but if re-elected, I plan to do a lot more. In my next term I want to see our city do more for our veterans and senior citizens. We are all going to get old one day, but it does not mean our quality of life has to diminish. We need to address, how do we include the aging population? We need to do more for our veterans such as having a patriotic committee bring proclamations to the council recognizing veterans, to name a few. Many of them left their homes and families to defend our country. It has to be discouraging to them, and it’s embarrassing to me, that so many of them return home, some injured, to no jobs and no help in other areas. They also deserve to return to a good quality of life. I think we should come together as a city and set precedence that when one of us suffers, we all suffer.” “There are some things I’d really like to change about our city. I want all citizens to be able to enjoy the same opportunities, regardless of their economic level. I don’t believe race so much divides our community as the economy does. It is really all about the haves versus the have-nots,” Ms. Scales Harris continued, adding that she would also like to see more than 10% of the population participate in voting. When Scales Harris was asked about her plans for the next four years she restates the pledge of her first term, “In the next four years, I will continue to listen, speak up and follow through.” And lastly, when asked how she hoped to be remembered, she said, “I hope to be remembered as someone who truly cared about everyone in Murfreesboro and worked hard to leave Murfreesboro a better city than it was before. I don’t care about getting the credit, just getting positive results. I want to thank the people of Murfreesboro for a great four-year learning experience, and if re-elected I promise to listen to you, speak up for you and follow through.”