I should have known the Local Controller would be more interested in this column than most others. She came up with the title and the basic idea. Why you ask? One word: Wells.¹ Actually, two words: Wells and Zorro.² My son and my dog, both gone too soon. I could stretch it to three words and include family but LC is already giving me the get on with it stare. Geez. I’m glad I don’t work for her. Wait a minute. I do work for her. How did that happen?! Perhaps we’ll explore that in future columns…or not. I’m going with not. Methinks it’s time to redirect myself back to the column in light of her crossed arms and tapping toes.

When we got Zorro in the late summer of 2017 Wells was already down a bad path. He had graduated from Catholic High in Little Rock in 2015 and in August off to Fayetteville he went. He pledged the same fraternity his big brother Colin did and began the college life full of energy and excitement. The energy and excitement were totally directed to the fraternity and not to his class work. He’d always struggled in school but this went beyond a struggle. It was a train wreck, except for his social life. Let me pause here to say a couple of things. We didn’t realize the impact Wells had on people of his generation. In a word, it was phenomenal. All-Pro sorta stuff. Again, we didn’t know it at the time but we do now. Secondly, his academic performance is truly a thing of legend. As he once told me, “Dang! I knew it was bad but I didn’t think that was possible.” Darkly comical for sure. Against my better judgment we sent him back for the 2016 spring semester. To be fair, he did better. To also be fair, a high level three tornado ain’t much different from a low level four.

Now that you’ve got that background, here’s why Wells³ and Zorro have such a special place in our family life and in our League life. It’s why we both grieve their deaths but celebrate their union in heaven. Wells’ death became the rallying cry for the one-of-a-kind opioid litigation filed in Crittenden County on behalf of all Arkansas cities, towns and counties as well as the state itself. Let me put that into perspective. While a handful of cities across the country filed litigation against Big Pharma in state or federal court, only Arkansas had the entire state and all three levels of government in a single lawsuit. What did that mean? It meant that our lawyer⁴ was, quite literally, at the table with just a few other lawyers from across the nation negotiating the settlement. It meant our entire state had a major role in dictating the terms of the national settlement. It means Arkansas, and all her municipalities and counties, is getting settlement monies now and we have been for over a year. Here’s what Jerome told us in June of 2022:

Tapley is hopeful for Arkansas, he said, thanks to the buy-in he has seen at the state and local levels. “You’ve got the real thinkers here, thoughtful people who care about home and will really put the time and effort into making this work in Arkansas.” No other state’s legal efforts have been as unified, he said. “Y’all are lucky, and you need to take real stock of that, because I believe—and I’ll go ahead and foretell the future—Arkansas is gonna be a shining star in this epidemic. Arkansas is gonna make a bigger difference than is going to happen anywhere else in the country, and y’all should be proud of that.”

Wells’ death became a powerful ally for me and our legal team. I vowed that he would not only be remembered but also become an integral part of bringing cures to the opioid epidemic. We honor his memory every single day through the League’s partnership with the Association of Arkansas Counties. We created ARORP, the Arkansas Opioid Recovery Partnership,⁵ to vet and rigorously scrutinize applications for receipt of the settlement monies. I’m proud to say we’ve placed settlement monies in all 75 counties helping to fill the many gaps necessary for people with the addiction that killed Wells to get real, hands-on help. Wells’ memory is saving lives every day in Arkansas.

Zorro was a one-of-a-kind dog. Before Wells died, Zorro was his running buddy. He’d get in the passenger seat of Wells’ very old and very beat up Tahoe and off they’d go. Disc golfing. Visiting buddies. Getting coffee and a pup cup. They were seldom apart. If for some reason I couldn’t find Z⁶ all I had to do was go downstairs to Wells’ bedroom and find them both napping, gaming, YouTubing or just “hangin’” as the Bean used to say. Wellsman sure had some great one-liners. After Wells’ death, Zorro became the family’s emotional strength. If we needed to cry, Z would snuggle up next to us. If we felt gloomy and unproductive, he’d grab one of his stuffed squeaky toys and prance, toss, growl and play until he got a smile out of us. If we sat outside on the stoop⁷ or back deck contemplating our next chapter or simply wondering if we should get pizza or cook hamburgers, he’d sit right next to us for as long as we wanted. In the mornings he’d jump onto the bed between me and Alison for what became known as his stretch and rub time. Fully stretched out—and he could stretch—he was close to six feet long. He’d yawn and grumble talk all the while getting Alison to rub his chest and tummy. I of course got the paws and bad breath.

As the pandemic stretched on and on, Zorro became a frequent visitor to the set when the League and ACHI⁸ were doing our weekly Covid broadcasts. Soon the crew grew to love him and on occasion he would put his chin on the desk next to me or Dr. Joe⁹ so he could steal the scene. What’s the quote from W.C. Fields?¹⁰ “Never work with children or animals!” Z made many appearances on Zoom calls and meetings. During our virtual conferences, meetings and conventions he was on set every day. Presidents Baxter and McKinney can attest to his presence and the joy he brought to all of us. As time wore on he became a regular in the office where he roamed the halls seeking treats and belly rubs. Lots of staffers called him the League mascot and therapy dog. He certainly was that.

I wondered how long it would take, but the Controller has now said: “Get on with it. Get to the point!” The point. Yes, let’s do that. When we honor the past we recognize the good, the bad and the ugly of those times. In other words, we learn. Many times, that knowledge causes ideas and creativity to spring forward. Such is the case here. As the League moves forward from the pandemic it’s critical that we learn from it. Please recall my mantra to the staff and to you the membership: We are you and you are us. Thus, what we’ve all learned needs due consideration as we continue to make great cities and a great state. Here’s an example. During the pandemic we had municipal officials and employees that had never participated in League meetings attend because they could do so remotely. Ding ding! An idea! How do we blend that knowledge into our programming? We embrace it. “It” being technology and its use in, for example, our certification program.

I’ve previously discussed our new Learning Management System during several meetings including the 89th Convention. I’m happy to tell you we’ll be unveiling the new Level One certification during the Winter Conference. Don’t panic. If you’ve already achieved Level One, you’ll still have that certification. Via the Learning Management System, you’ll be able to register online and take classes for credit in an on-demand setting. What does that mean? Whether you’re at home, the office, on a smart phone, a tablet or a computer, you will be able to access the training and proceed at your own pace. It’s an interactive system that requires responses every few minutes to ensure the entire lesson is completed and the knowledge being imparted is understood. Pretty cool stuff! Many of you, of course, prefer in-person training. Good news! We’ll still do in-person training using the same format as the on-demand version. A moderator will lead interactive discussions to ensure what’s been seen and heard is understood. Don’t fret about Levels Two and Three. We’re building a robust library that will allow each of you to pursue more in-depth study of things significant to you.

We’ve learned from our previous experiences that a blend of virtual and in-person works. That blend gives the entire membership the opportunity to become certified. Whether the choice is on-demand or sitting in a classroom, everyone will have the chance to learn. We’re honoring the past, including the previous certification program, and embracing a new delivery system. I think Wells and Zorro are applauding that while enjoying a heavenly cup of coffee and a pup cup.

Until next time, peace.

1
Many of you know Wells’ story. My stepson, he was in my life from age 10 until his death in 2020. He was 23. 23. Before April of 2020 my immediate association to the number 23 was Michael Jordan, one of best basketball players ever. No more. Now my brain goes to Wells and the memories of finding him on his bathroom floor, dead from an overdose of fentanyl. His story is typical and tragic of those caught in the evil web of opioid addiction. His time on this earth, while fraught with problems the last two years of his life, was magic. He was the brightest shooting star in the night sky. His life was cut short, but his positive impact on our family and his friends remains. If you’re interested in his story, click here: https://bit.ly/3IBWshE
2
Zorro was our 75-pound black and white goldendoodle. He was six when his pain and health were too much for him to bear. The Controller and I took him to our vet and did what had to be done. We held him. We talked to him. We cried and cried some more. The entire thing, whatever it was, was a seven-day process, from his not being able to jump into my truck one day, to a set of X-rays showing terrible hip dysplasia the next day and then the day after his bodily functions started shutting down. An ultrasound showed a massive tumor, then surgery, then the biopsy report of bone cancer throughout his entire body. We had one afternoon with him before the Saturday morning final trip. We took him to a favorite restaurant of ours where he was well known and loved. He got a special order of chicken tenders and more love and hugs than I could ever fully describe.
3
AKA: the Bean, Freshy, Wellsman and Wellzini-Bambini. We do a lot of nicknames at Casa Hayes. The Local Controller has re-entered the picture. “Not we, big boy. You. You do a lot of nicknames and the rest of us try not to listen.” Fair point.
4
Jerome Tapley from the firm of Cory Watson in Birmingham, Alabama. We honored Jerome during the 88th Convention in 2022. He was featured on the cover of City & Town in July of that year: https://bit.ly/3PRI9uc
5
https://www.arorp.org/ Do your city or town a favor. Go to this website asap. Money is available to help get rid of this scourge in our state. Learn what’s available and then study what’s needed in your neck of the woods. Chances are good that with right amount of study meaningful action will follow.
6
Remember, I love a good nickname! I called him Z, Z-Man, Z-Dog, Handsome Dan the Doodle Man and many others. In turn, the Local Controller would bark (See what I did there?!): “He has a name! Use it. You’re just confusing him.” Ahhh…good times.
7
The word stoop stems from, depending on one’s point of view, the Middle English word stoupen or the Dutch word stoep. Stoupen means to bend downward. Stoep means the platform of a house, approached by steps. I’m going with stoep. https://bit.ly/3LRU8GV
8
https://achi.net/ The Arkansas Center for Health Improvement is celebrating its 25th anniversary. ACHI was a great partner with local government during the pandemic and that relationship continues.
9
Dr. Joe Thompson is the president and CEO of ACHI and, I’m happy to say, a very good friend. https://bit.ly/46o9c7t
10
Fields was born in 1880 and died in 1946. He had a terrible childhood but survived to become an incredible entertainer. He could juggle, dance, tell jokes and sing. He had a series of one-liners that were the envy of many in the world of film. https://bit.ly/46kOLYR