Over the last couple of months, there has been much discussion by the County Commissioners about the State Health Improvement Program and the hiring of the SHIP coordinator. As the coordinator, I chose to do my job and not speak publicly on this situation. Now that a decision has been made, I feel that it is appropriate to communicate to the residents of Freeborn County how I feel about the issues debated concerning the hiring process, the value of the SHIP program, and my personal reasons for seeking this position.

If the Freeborn County commissioners are not comfortable with the hiring process for temps and contract employees, they certainly should review that process and adopt one with which they are comfortable. However, reopening a position that has been filled for nearly four months rather then finding a solution to future hires does not really resolve this problem. I am pleased that the commissioners voted to leave the coordinator’s position as is and continue forward with the SHIP effort. If there has been an issue, it seems to me that it is not the hiring process but rather the person who was hired that is the real issue. I hope that I am fair in assuming that it is not my extensive volunteer community involvement that is coming under scrutiny here but, rather, the fact that besides being a resident of Freeborn County I am an elected official for the city of Albert Lea.

There are those that find that one is not compatible with the other, and I strongly disagree with that position. I have spoken on record several times on the importance of city and county collaboration and how critical it is that we bring all of our resources to bear when addressing issues that affect the quality of life in our communities. I believe that the majority of residents in Freeborn County also want this kind of collaboration and find the value in it.

There are several reasons that I accepted the SHIP position with the top one being the program itself. Aimed at policy, systems and permanent environmental change, the SHIP program is an upstream Minnesota effort to dramatically affect our quality of life in a positive manner and I wanted to be a part of that effort. I saw my experience as an elected official and public servant as being a positive addition to the job skills that I could bring to the position. It is difficult to move past programs into true environmental change and I thought that my understanding of governmental bodies and issues would be of value in implementing this critical program.

So as the SHIP program moves forward, I will not shy away from being an elected official, nor apologize for it. I am honored to have been chosen by the residents of the 3rd Ward to represent them, and I am also honored to be a part of the Freeborn County SHIP program. I am using my life experiences and job skills to do the best job I can to administer the SHIP program in a way that is beneficial to all of us here in Freeborn County. I will continue to believe that collaboration and viewing our communities and neighbors as a whole is what will bring us the greatest rewards. It is in unity and commitments to a common goal that we will find our strength, and in doing so, build a healthy future for ourselves and those we love.

Ellen Kehr

coordinator

Freeborn County SHIP

Albert Lea