Hello! Welcome to what will hopefully be a periodic informational column on the workings within Isle of Wight County from the perspective of a Supervisor.

I am the newly elected representative from the Carrsville district, having been sworn in Nov. 9, two days after the election, with these words:

I, Rex W. Alphin, do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge all the duties incumbent upon me as a member of the Board of Supervisors for Isle of Wight County, Carrsville District, according to the best of my ability. So help me God.

The last four words gave me the strength to say the first 61. The task seems daunting, for this position requires one to represent 6,782 residents from a vast array of social and economic perspectives stretching from Camptown and Carrsville, up through Walters and Zuni, through Raynor all the way to Moonlight in the northern end of the county, over 60 miles roundtrip.

Nevertheless, I dove into my first board meeting on Nov. 17 and was graciously welcomed by four fellow board members as well as members of the county staff.

Ahead lies learning the nature of county budgets, transportation plans, intergovernmental committees, legal issues, leasing arrangements, education challenges, economic development possibilities, utility concerns, fire and rescue operations, and a host of other areas we as supervisors are called to address on your behalf.

I plan to be more specific in the future with particular issues that will concern you as citizens of this county and give details of the working of our county. This first column is a way of introducing myself and the overall issues I see in our future.

In closing, let me say I see my role as serving a wonderful county and an extraordinary group of people that I am proud to call my community. If I can be of any service to you, feel free to contact me. If I can’t personally be of help, I can direct you to the excellent, competent staff of our county government.

I look forward to communicating and hopefully getting to know you in the future.

REX ALPHIN of Walters is a farmer, businessman, author, county supervisor and contributing columnist for The Tidewater News. His email address is rexalphin@aol.com.