West Lake Hills Mayor Dave Claunch has a history of volunteerism that gives him far more satisfaction than any of his many awards, but he demonstrated the generosity and character that earned him the Westlake Chamber of Commerce citizen of the year award during last week’s awards banquet. After being presented with a glass trophy and a $1,000 check designated for the charity of his choice, he chose to give it to his runner-up, House the Homeless founder Richard Troxell (see story on front page).

Claunch has served only two years as mayor, yet his accomplishments are many. Part of the reason stems from his willingness to serve. He has demonstrated what can be accomplished when a sincere effort is made to nurture teamwork between the city and business community. This helped him get an agreement among business people in the city to join the city’s wastewater system, thus making service more affordable to residents. People trust him for good reason. He listens to all concerns and is able to come up with plans that are fair to everyone.

Long before he took over as mayor, Claunch demonstrated a sincere desire to help people. Last year, he was named the Austin Chamber of Commerce Volunteer of the Year for his work co-chairing an education committee task force concerning Austin Community College. He is also an active supporter of many other nonprofit causes that include Wonders and Worries, Habitat for Humanity, the Capital Area Food Bank, the Political Asylum Project of Austin and the Texas Freedom Network. In addition, he’s currently assisting the Texas House Jurisprudence Committee with an interim study over the next few months to address lyme disease issues.

With so many successful causes, it is easy to see why people want this problem-solver on their team. West Lake Hills residents should consider themselves extremely lucky that Claunch is willing to serve them, and we hope they will take time to congratulate him on an honor that is richly deserved.

Ed Allen