I am proud to call Thousand Oaks my home of 19 years. My wife and I were blessed to raise our children here and have the opportunity to see them educated in one of the finest environments in Southern California.

It's no mystery why Thousand Oaks is such a wonderful place: It's the people and the public servants we trust in local government to guard the ideals this area was forged upon while at the same time enhancing opportunity for its future. John Short should be one of those trusted servants.

I met John 10 years ago while president of Thousand Oaks Little League, and John took a position on our board of directors. In a short time (no pun intended) John's strengths and personality immediately came center stage. I was quickly impressed by his ability to execute his position (his finance skills kicked in and not only stabilized the league financially, but under his leadership as current league president, the league is close to realizing the dream of its own field complex) and his ease of working and interacting with league parents and city officials.

But most importantly, I was taken by John's love and compassion for the children. John's ability to research all sides of an issue is impressive and his problem-solving and listening ability solid as well, but his love and compassion for our youth stands above all else. And simply put, that's John's agenda--our children and their future. That's it . . . and that's enough for me.

I'll be honest. I know little about the Conejo Valley Unified School District Board and its mechanics, but this I do know: It can only be made better by the addition of John Short. Trust him with your vote Nov. 7. Tim Heyne Thousand Oaks