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To the Editor:

Last year was certainly an awful year for my family, especially when I got the call at work just days before Thanksgiving that my stepfather had been found dead on the kitchen floor.

Sadly he never provided any insurance or other provisions to help take care of his affairs, much less anything for his funeral or burial. Naturally, this caused a massive crisis for my mom and me to deal with on our own with absolutely no help. Part of that crisis included the property taxes that the Isle of Wight County treasurer said needed to be paid.

I can’t begin to describe the immense stress and impending doom felt when we drove down to the complex fearing the worst: that the treasurer wouldn’t care about our situation or be willing to work with us. In all my years dealing with the county, the previous treasurer and employees were certainly the most uncaring and seemingly mean, reminding of the days of agents scouring the county trying to ticket and boot people, so this was an experience I absolutely dreaded.

Figuring out a solution at the treasurer’s office took a long time, so fortunately we were the only ones there. Nearing the end of the encounter we realized that the woman helping us was Dahlis Atkins herself — the interim treasurer.

Ms. Atkins and her deputy Gayla were so pleasant, kind, caring and supportive that I could probably write a book extolling their virtues. Dahlis went above and beyond anything we could have ever hoped for, helping us avoid any issues over mom’s car, and we emerged feeling incredibly blessed and lucky.

Any public official serving the public should always do the job properly but also act with the citizen in mind, to do right by the voter and still be a compassionate and caring person.

I had never intended to write a letter of endorsement for anyone in the race for treasurer this year, but I do so today. It is without question that Dahlis Atkins is the absolute best candidate and only choice for treasurer of Isle of Wight.

She is a down-to-earth, humble and caring public servant, the kind we rarely ever see in a political elected office. I strongly support Ms Atkins and hope you will vote for her when you cast your vote in November.

Dave Lyons

Chesapeake