Be VISIBLE, Be Participatory, Be PRESENT!
Critical Experience
My Background
I'm a father first and foremost. My children are what I'm most proud of in the world. They have grown and are growing up to be wonderful human beings in the world and I attribute that all to their mother and God's Divine Grace.
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As for me, I'm a military brat, the child of Hazel and Thomas Rockeymoore, born in Paducah, Texas in November of 1967. My father served 20 years until retirement in the Air Force, giving his children a worldly background of travel and wide human experience. My mother (RIP) was a school teacher and a military Education Counselor. My sisters, Maya Rockeymoore-Cummings and Meredith Rockeymoore-Brooks are accomplished in their fields, both doctors of Political Science and Pediatric Anesthesiology, respectively.
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I've been a soldier, almost 5 years of active duty in the Army ending with Desert Storm in 1991. I exited the military with a service medal, some awards (AARCOM & 2 AAMs) and an honorable discharge before heading to Prairie View A&M University, where I graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Geography, I went on to complete the Master's degree in Environmental Geography at Indiana University-Bloomington and to attain ABD status while pursuing a PhD in Geography Education at Texas State University-San Marcos. I've served as a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Analyst, Manager and Consultant. I've driven Glass-bottom boats at the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment in San Marcos, TX, as well as worked as a paraprofessional at San Marcos High School, before gaining my alternative certification to teach English Language and Reading Arts (ELAR) at Del Valle High School, outside of Austin, TX.
I have been serving my communities since I was a small child. From my early years in the Cub Scouts through the Webelos, culminating in my election as Senior Patrol Leader for my Boy Scout Troop in Del City, Oklahoma at 14 years of age, I have been both humbled and blessed by my peers to be chosen to lead. This trend continued in the military, exemplified by my appointment as Assistant Platoon Guide by our Drill Sergeants in my Basic Training Unit.
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As a PhD Candidate in the Department of Geography at Texas State here in San Marcos, I was appointed to the Graduate Student Council in its first semester of existence in 2005. In 2006 I was re-appointed to the GSC but chose instead to run for a seat in the Associated Student Government, which I won.
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I was blessed to be elected to the San Marcos City Council in December of 2018 after a runoff where I carried the day with 64% of the total vote. I, we - as a Council, a city, a state, a nation and a world - have since been tested by an extraordinary series of events leading to a changed and continually changing world.
Holding office and engaging in the business of leadership during COVID-19 was an exercise in love, patience and decision-making. We had to be continually present to the needs of our population whilst simultaneously carrying on the business of the city in its day-to-day operations.
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A couple of years after the depths of the Pandemic, people are still afraid. We have tried to move on and resume life as normal, but those years still occupy an inordinate place of primacy in our minds. We remain concerned, for our lives, for our businesses, for our world as it continues to change in ways we cannot predict. Honoring that fear while not becoming bogged down by it is the ordeal each of us has to contend with, on our own but also, together.
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Having lost a re-election campaign as well as a campaign for a different seat on City Council, I have learned what all who seek to represent the people learn, if they are lucky. That how people feel, is important. When fear is in the air and people seek safety, what is familiar becomes paramount. As dark as it sometimes seemed in the Fall of 2020, 8,000+ people chose to vote for me in a fraught election, although 10,000+ voted for the other candidate. In 2021, when I ran against Jude Prather for Council Place 6, I lost by 28 votes out of over 4,000 cast.
I do not regret a thing, the will of the people will always be done and I served in a manner that I and those who love me are proud of.
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I stand for the highest principles and will not be bought or influenced by anything other than the principles that I stand for.
Any time I am called to stand Out Front, I will always seek the people's favor and support in service to this land we all love, keeping our gems of Central Texas intact as the centers of civilization and progress they have been for over 13,000 years!
My Experience
What I have learned, primarily, is that it is most important to listen to the people.
People want to be listened to by the ones they elect to office.
At the level of local, city politics, there is no separation between the representative and the constituents, as there is at the state and national levels. The interaction and engagement is direct. We see each other in the grocery store and at Summer in the Park.
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When I was an elected official, it was my job to listen whenever someone wanted to speak to me and to take their considerations seriously no matter what side of the political aisle they sat on and even if they didn't choose to participate at all!
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All of these interactions helped me to understand the population I swore to represent and to make decisions for based upon their collective interests, but also in the best interest of the City of San Marcos (COSM) as a greater entity.
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I have been really excited to be able to put these lessons into action. I am proud of the contributions that I was able to make in service to the COSM. Thank you, citizens of the City of San Marcos, for entrusting me with our city's future. It has been an honor to serve in all capacities, to include the boards and commissions that I have served on as well.
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I do not know what the future holds, but I know that my experience here, in the COSM, has prepared me for whatever may come and I will be forever grateful to you all.
