This year's 10 county commission candidates came face to face with what exactly they signed on for at the CVIC Hall.
"We are in the business of providing services to the community," county manager T. Michael Brown told would-be commissioners. "You will be stewards of the public trust and manage the county's finances."
Douglas County is a $156.5 million budgeted agency with 20 departments, 55 divisions, 56 different funds, 550 employees, 750 programs and services and roughly 52,000 constituents.
The Douglas County Library hosted the candidate-orientation meeting.
"We are a nonpartisan entity trying to bring together all view points," said library director Linda Deacy on June 11. "We want to reach out and work with candidates to make a place where everybody can get information."
Blaine Spires, who is running against incumbent Doug Johnson for district 3, said he wanted to acquaint himself with as many people and facets of the community as possible.
"I'm doing my best to meet everybody," Spires said. "There are multiple aspects of this community, and I really want to work for everyone."
Commissioner Doug Johnson, who has been on the board for four years, helped organize the event.
"I hope everyone got an idea of how passionate Douglas County employees are about their jobs," Johnson said. "It can be overwhelming when you are handed everything, and anyone running for office needs to have a full grasp of what they are getting into."
County Chairman Kelly Kite spoke to candidates via video.
"You'll make 1,200 decisions a year," he said. "And no matter how insignificant a decision may seem, it will affect someone else."
Kite said when a commissioner steps out of his house, he or she represents Douglas County.
"It's utterly important to leave your attitude, ego and anger at home," he said. "Every decision has to be based on whether it's good or bad for Douglas County."
