It was a terrible weekend for an interview. Rick Darlington was calving, and winter had arrived in full force. Rick has been a cattleman his whole life. So, I knew I was interfering at a terrible time, but as much as he cares about his livestock, he also cares about the county issues that he believes needs addressing.
Rick Darlington is a man with few words. So, when I asked him why he was running for County Commissioner, he said, "Roads. Budget. We've lost something of the power in the office of the commissioners over the years. They actually have power." When I asked him to give me an example, he said, "Sure, free and roaming bison. The statement Martha Williams made from the Fish and Game that said they could do what-ever they want. That's not true; they have to coordinate with the local government authorities."
Rick believes that forty-plus years in the agriculture business will make him effective with budgets. The budget is massive and complicated but broken down into separate departments. The budget is one of the major responsibilities of the commissioners.
"I've traveled the roads in this county and have lived 30 miles SE of Big Sandy my whole life. I think I know a lot about road maintenance. You live on these roads so you know what I am talking about."
Another reason why Rick believes he would be a good commissioner is that he wants to address and be involved in all county issues. "I want to address the issues like the free and roaming bison."
"My family has been in the Big Sandy area for over 100 years." His wife's name is Brenda. They have three daughters, Loni, who lives in Houston, a Doctor in Bio-Science, Sheena teaches school in the Bears Paw, and Eryn returned to Big Sandy recently and works at Ag-Prairie Insurance.
And as we concluded the interview, Rick said, "I believe I am approachable and am willing to discuss any list of issues the people of Chouteau county are concerned about." He went on to say how important the last quality is; Approachability. He wants to be the kind of commissioner that people are comfortable to approach and discuss with him anything that is bothering them about county government.
