Friendship, loyalty hallmarks of Philip Taldo

The only surprise to Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s naming long-time friend, high school classmate and Springdale businessman Philip Taldo to the Arkansas Highway Commission was simply — what took so long?

Recently the governor, on a planned trip to Northwest Arkansas, spoke before the Springdale Rotary Club. He made the announcement of Taldo’s appointment to long, sustained and appreciative applause.

The hand-clapping was not so much for the governor, I think.

It was instead, for all that Philip Taldo, has done and is doing in the Springdale-Northwest Arkansas community.

And now that Taldo’s schoolyard buddy from decades ago at Springdale High is the Governor of Arkansas — well Philp Taldo is focused on helping Arkansas as well.

Taldo won’t take his seat on the five-member commission until later this month (Jan. 5, 2017) but for a rare year or so, it gives Northwest Arkansas a leg up on the commission.

Still presiding at the commission is Rogers-banker and manabout-town in Benton County, Dick Trammel.

So now there are two very strong proponents of roads, industrial development and especially Northwest Arkansas who will be sitting at the table together. Wow. Once it was always a struggle for any governor or any party — whether the highway commissioner from the Third Congressional District would hail from the River Valley (i.e. Fort Smith and down to Russellville/Clarksville) or from the rapidly growing Northwest Arkansas area.

The first governor to break from the list of Fort Smith and River Valley Highway Commission appointees was then governor, now former President Bill Clinton with a status-shaking appointee in F. H. Martin, a former heavy equipment dealer from Fayetteville.

Martin, who later resigned the seat due to some business conflicts, sadly soon died of cancer. He was, as history records, a good man and a good highway commissioner.

Clinton then pulled another appointment from Northwest Arkansas — Bobby Hopper of Springdale, a former Ford dealer.

Hopper served out the remainder of Martin’s term and then went another full-term under Clinton’s appointment, making him one of the longest serving highway commissioners in the state’s history.

It would take a Republican governor, Mike Huckabee, to name the next Northwest Arkansas native, as a highway commissioner. In his first year in office, Huckabee named the first Benton County resident in modern history to that office — Jonathan Barnett of Siloam Springs.

Barnett and Huckabee were friends dating back to Boys State when Huckabee wanted to run for Governor and convinced Barnett, a stellar rival, to run for Boys’ Nation delegate and visit the White House. Barnett accepted Huckabee’s deal and marshaled his forces to see that the fireman’s kid from Hope was the next Governor of Boys State. But back to appointee Taldo. Hutchinson cited a long friendship with Taldo, who also serves on the Arkansas Economic Development Commission and the Northwest Arkansas Airport Commission.

But Taldo, the governor noted, is not just a board fixture, but a thinker and a worker. “He understands infrastructure and the connection between infrastructure and the economy, with highways being a key part of infrastructure,” Hutchinson said.

And Taldo is a faithful friend.

before me. I’ll do it with an approach that is much less hurried and much less frantic. I will do it with a realization that perhaps I can make a greater contribution by slowing life down. In short, I will be calmer, steadier, and less frustrated with how each day unfolds.

Yes, I needed a break, but I never wanted to leave the working world for good. At this time, I simply look forward to whatever work my hand finds to do next.

In the last 15 years I worked at a very busy pace as a school principal, but I always knew in my mind that each day is a gift, a blessing, and a part of life to be enjoyed.

Now, after slowing down for just a while, I know it in my heart as well.

This is a time in which the details of my own future are uncertain, but also a time to look ahead to a new role that I feel prepared to assume.

Waiting to see what will transpire has an element of excitement about it. But it can also lead a person to ask countless questions and to grow impatient. (I’ve tried to refrain from doing the latter).

Charles H. Spurgeon, the great minister in England in the 1800s, once commented about how faith is important, even when we have no idea where life is leading or what the future holds. Sometimes we want to know all the details and have all the answers but they simply aren’t there.

Spurgeon wrote, “God is too good to be unkind and He is too wise to be mistaken. And when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart.”

Those are wise words for me to remember at this time, wise words for all of us to consider as we approach a new year, and wise words for anyone to heed at any stage in life.

May your own journey always be one of purpose and fulfillment.

— David Wilson, EdD, of Springdale, is a writer, consultant and presenter, who grew up in Arkansas but worked 27 years in education in Missouri. You may e-mail him at dwnotes@hotmail.com. The opinions expressed are those of the author.