There are times in the political scene when an elected official proves himself or herself to the general public. I want to give an example of this by referring to state Rep. Brian Ellis.

Following Guy Travaglio as our state representative is not an easy task, and one in which some people, including myself, wondered if Ellis was up to the task - this, especially, since Travaglio, in my opinion, not only talked, but showed his sincerity, in doing the people's business.

Recently, I contacted Ellis concerning then-upcoming legislation regarding the "Growing Greener" initiative. As a direct result of that contact, I became enlightened that Ellis has truly "fit in" the political scene for the following reasons.

First of all, I contacted his Harrisburg office, since I knew the House was in session, and left a message expressing concerns I had relating to upcoming legislation and its impact on the City of Butler. He returned my call within an hour and left me a message that included his cell phone number.

Secondly, when I called his cell phone (at a time when he was en route to the House session), he not only listened to my concerns, but also showed appreciation for my interest in the legislation.

Finally, Ellis told me he had been reviewing the legislation, and still had some unanswered questions relating to the proposed bill, and said he needed to get those questions answered before he could either support or oppose the legislation.

I fully realize that the three items I mentioned might seem routine and part of his job, but speaking for myself as an elected official in a much smaller scale, those are things that I pride myself in and appreciate in other elected officials.

The fact that he returned my call and listened is naturally a very important part of his responsibility, but the fact that Ellis did not just tell me what he might have thought I wanted to hear, but, rather, said he needed to research the matter further, showed me a trait that was truly impressive.

He wanted to make the right decision and couldn't and wouldn't commit until he had the right answers.

At that moment, I realized that Ellis had proved himself to me. Our city and state are faced with serious problems, and we need serious and competent people to represent us.

I publicly thank Brian Ellis for his efforts and also for assuring me that he is indeed up to the task.