The Cowboy Commissioner

Anastasia Pavlinskaya reading the oath of office to second term Cooper City Commissioner James "Jamie" Curran. Photo Credits: JEREMY HAAS

BY ANASTASIA PAVLINSKAYA

I sit with a lump in my throat in a cold plastic chair, surrounded by some of Cooper City’s most well known personalities and I cannot wait for the moment that is ahead of me. Newly elected mayor Greg Ross suddenly calls my name, “…and reading the oath of office for Mr. Curran is high school senior Anastasia Pavlinskaya.” Suddenly all eyes are on me and Commissioner Curran. Your average CCHS student might say – “Wait, Curran as in Jamie Curran, the guy on the golf cart who drives around CCHS?” and the answer is yes, not only does Jamie Curran travel the school far and wide to make sure that everything runs smoothly, holding the framework of the school in his hands, he additionally holds together the framework of the city.

Originally receiving his degree in accounting, Curran has been a part of Cooper City High School since 1984. In 2008 Mr. James “Jamie” Curran, ran for commissioner of District Four of Cooper City, which encompasses Embassy Lakes and Flamingo Gardens. These areas include the homes of hundreds of current and former students who have passed through Cooper City High School. The ability to knock on a door and be able to build upon this connection played a big role in Curran’s 2008 campaign.

“I ran because I believed I could truly make a difference, working at the school and dealing with different parent groups, teachers, and students taught me that one person can make a difference,” Curran said.

This sentiment was represented in his campaign slogan “From the entire city choice, comes a new voice”, and on Tuesday November 2, 2010, Curran became Commissioner Curran of Cooper City, a title that bore more new adjustments outside of just the label.

Curran, as a newly elected commissioner, had to learn how to take his devotion to the residents and apply it in a formal government setting.

“You realize you can’t always do everything to make everyone happy, but you can try” Curran said.

Curran may have had a learning curve, but there was support from the fellow commission members, making it easier on the freshman commissioner. With help from his mentors, Curran quickly developed his own style of doing things.

“Whenever I know a motion is going to be brought to the table, I make sure to look at all the aspects of it, how it will affect the city and how it will affect the people,” Curran said.

At commission meetings Curran demonstrates a sense of holistic knowledge when it comes his turn to speak into the microphone.  But often, the toughest part isn’t speaking, but listening to the complaints of others.

“Every resident that speaks for their three minutes to the commission cannot always have their problem solved, but it is our duty to try,” Curran said.

While it is impossible to make everybody happy, Curran intends to take his willingness to try past the boundaries of Cooper City. Curran would like to run for the School Board of Broward County in the future and that is an ambition that he feels would further bridge his knack for politics and his deep devotion for students.

“Today’s youth make up 30% of the population and 100% of the future,” Curran said.

Before Curran can move past our “someplace special”, he has at least one more term on the commission. This year he ran unopposed for re-election, assuring his place on the council for the next term and giving him more time to implement his plans for the city.

“I would like to reinvest in Cooper City along with forming a closer relationship between the city and schools, and increase services for seniors,” Curran said.

Even with such big plans, at the end of the day Curran finds the deepest pleasures in the smallest things.

“My biggest joy is when a student comes to a commission meeting and looks up and sees me and says, hey I know that guy, he’s my janitor, or when I set-up for an event like Relay for Life, then come back out onto the stage in a pressed suit with a button-down shirt as Commissioner,” Curran said.

As all eyes look upon the Commissioner and myself, we each raise our right hands, and that lump in my throat turns into actual words, words that commit the commissioner to another term as a public servant to the city of Cooper City.  Suddenly, the perfect repetition of the oath is disrupted as I stumble over the words, a simple mistake that Curran doesn’t hesitate to laugh off before continuing where we left off. A moment that not only provides a few laughs for the crowded City Hall, but embodies the genuine nature of our beloved cowboy and commissioner.