MILAN, NM -- Vivian Brumbelow, after serving as a public servant for the Village of Milan for over 30 years, reflects on her time as a trustee and offers insights on her thoughts about how the board should proceed with her deciding to not run for reelection.
Brumbelow first began her career in public service 35 years ago. When asked how she first became involved in public service she said, “To be honest with you, the village was going to pave our streets and were going to charge us. It was a huge amount of money and I said ‘This is not right; we shouldn’t have to pay that much, and I want to get involved’... I didn’t think we should have to pay and that’s when I decided to do something.” After this, Brumbelow decided to join the planning and zoning board.
Following her time in planning and zoning, there was a vacancy in the Milan Board of Trustees, which she was interested in and was later appointed to. She served for two years as an appointee and then ran for the position. She said, 'I lived there in the community for so long that I saw things happening, and I wanted to get involved with it and see if I could make a difference or help make a difference.' Brumbelow has been involved with the school and 4-H and she said she wanted to continue to see if she could be of service to the community.
When asked if she feels as though she has made an impact on the community Brumbelow said, 'I don't know that I've made an impact. I feel that I served the community the best I could, without showing favoritism. I tried to do what I felt was right for everyone.' When asked what she felt was the biggest accomplishment that she was involved in she said it was getting the quiet zone for the railroad. Brumbelow said, 'To me that was a big accomplishment, because if you live very
“I’m just an ordinary person who just wants to see the community grow.” - Vivian Brumbelow, retiring servant of Milan close, you're going to hear those trains all night long.'
Brumbelow said there have been some struggles while she has been on the Board of Trustees. She said, “There’s been times where you know not everybody sees the same thing, we all have our differences. But I feel like we’ve been able to come together and do the best we could for the Village.” Brumbelow, despite all the time she has worked in public service says she just sees herself as a normal individual. She said, “I just feel like I’m just an ordinary person who just wants to see the community grow…I always thought it was a good community to be in.”
Moving forward, Brumbelow believes the most important thing for the board to do is to work together. She said, “Not everyone is going to be on the same page, but sit down and talk about it and decide what's best for the community. Keep the community growing.” Brumbelow also said that they have done so much in the past year and she wants to see it continue. She said she would also like to see younger people get involved in public service. Brumbelow said, “They have a different view. What would they like to see… That’s what I would like to see, younger people get involved. There’s a lot they could get involved in.”
Overall Brumbelow said that her experience in public service has been good and an eye-opener into the operations of projects. She said that a lot goes on and there are many hoops that need to be jumped through to get things done. When asked what has kept her going so long in public service she said, “I enjoy it, I really do. I know there’s people that say, ‘well that’s crazy’ it’s something that I do enjoy. I’ll miss it I’m sure, but that’s okay it’s time for somebody else to step up.”
Brumbelow has been contemplating stepping down for the last year. When asked how she decided that it was time she said, “I just thought, I’ve been in a long time, it’s time for a change… I think you just kind of know, when you get to the point of retiring, it’s like you know when you want to retire.” Brumbelow ended off by saying this to the next trustee who will be taking her place, “Don’t go in thinking you can make a lot of changes. That doesn’t happen, don’t make a lot of promises. Go in and work with the board, with the manager and the staff, all the employees. Just work towards the betterment of the community.”