The Mayor by Nicole Rolls

Mayor Van Horn sheds light on his life as mayor of Nacogdoches and being a local dentist. Being 65 years of age has certainly not slowed him down one bit. He is an ambitious man who likes to be productive and active in all that he does, rather than take the easy way out and retire.
Mayor Van Horn has lived in Nacogdoches for 30 years and has served three terms as Mayor. He has been a licensed dentist for 40 years and loves it. His goal is to stay in office for five terms at least, while still practicing dentistry. He said as mayor he does not get paid, so dentistry is his main source of income. Mayor Van Horn splits up his week so that he can perform at both “jobs” and give each a respectable amount of time as needed.
He says that he likes being mayor, but sometimes it can be very frustrating. It can take weeks to months for a policy to make its way into action, which Mayor Van Horn is not used to being a dentist. He likes how in dentistry he finds a problem and can fix it, giving him closure. But with politics, he said, “Government is slow, but it should be, “ and that we as the general public have to be patient and let the process run its course. The benefit of being in a small town is that one can make a difference in affecting some part of that town pretty easily, then say a big city. Mayor Van Horn said that he tries to “make decisions that are best for the whole” when it comes to councils and big decisions. He hopes that “the people are confident in the process,” and feel that they are getting a say and not being forgotten; a sort of trust process to the people.
Mayor Van Horn believes that young people should get involved now in politics where they live. Being mayor, he wishes more people would vote and be engaged in what is going on in their town. He worked his way up to the position he is in now when he was younger and has seen the benefits that have come from that. Mayor Van Horn says that he loves being mayor and is “getting better at it” all the time. Every term that he has served he gets more knowledgeable about how to be mayor and the responsibilities that come with the title. When asked what he will do when he is no longer mayor he said simply, “ I don’t know…I will do something.” He has thought about the possibility of teaching or becoming a manager at the public dental clinic as options.
Mayor Van Horn has not always lived in Nacogdoches, but continues to serve this town proudly everyday.