May Hownikan Article

Come this June, we will say goodbye to a devoted servant who has led her community with integrity, compassion and respect. Vice-Chairwoman Linda Capps is a woman of character who has led with quiet strength and grace.

What stands out to me most about Ms. Capps is not that everyone agreed with her on everything. That is not what leadership is, and it’s not what made people love and respect her. What made her special was the way she treated people. Over a lifetime of service as an educator, community leader and Vice-Chairwoman since 1990, she built a reputation for showing up, helping others and making people feel seen.

Over this past year in the Legislature, she made me feel welcomed and valued. That should be normal, but too often it is not. She responds to every email and goes out of her way to find answers. She made sure I had what I needed, and she always made me feel respected as a partner in serving our Nation. She will be greatly missed and has my deep respect.

I had a conversation last year with Charles Scott, a current candidate for Vice-Chairman, about the role of leaders. He said something that stayed with me: “Leadership is putting the needs of others ahead of your own.” That is exactly what Vice-Chairwoman Capps has done for decades. She has been present, accessible and grounded in the people she serves.

Her leadership gives us something to reflect on, because that kind of leadership feels harder to find these days. All around us and across the country, public life has taken on a different tone. People are quicker to dismiss than to listen, quicker to make things personal than to try to understand one another. When that becomes the example set by people in positions of influence, it wears on a community.

That is why this June’s election matters. We will be choosing leaders for District 5, District 7 and Vice-Chair, and I hope our citizens will take that responsibility seriously. I hope people will read about the candidates, reach out and listen for more than promises. Listen for where their heart is, what they value and whether they carry themselves in a way that will strengthen this Nation.

Respect is one of our core values, not just in words, but in how we carry ourselves, especially when we disagree. Real respect is tested in those moments, and if we lose that, we lose more than civility. We lose trust.

Linda Capps showed us what that kind of leadership looks like in practice. She led without intimidation. She disagreed without disrespect. She made people feel heard, even when she saw things differently.

As she steps away from this role, I hope we do more than thank her. I hope we learn from her. I hope we hold onto the qualities that made her such a steady leader: compassion, humility, patience and the ability to disagree without making it personal. That is how trust is built. That is how people feel welcome to participate. That is how a community stays strong.

We are a strong Nation, but strength is not measured by how we treat those who agree with us. It is measured by how we treat those who do not.

If we want our people to re-engage, vote and believe in our institutions, then we must give them leadership that reflects the best of who we are.

Vice-Chairwoman Capps set that example for many years. The question now is whether we have the wisdom to follow it.