HAYS COUNTY — Commissioner Michelle Cohen has held the ambition of writing children’s books for as long as she can remember. In a few weeks, her dream will come true, with the release of “A Day in the Life of a Hays County Commissioner.” “When I became county commissioner, even before that, when I was running for county commissioner and I would talk to people about my campaign, they would say things to me like, ‘Well, I’ll vote for you, but I don’t know what a commissioner does,’” Cohen explained. “There was definitely a lack of understanding of what a commissioner can do for the community.” In an effort to help educate others, she began thinking about how she could reach out to the community. In February 2023, Mary Lou Alvarez, a district judge in Bexar County, released an activity book filled with fun facts, puzzles and coloring pages about the courthouse. “The Courthouse Adventure Book” was aimed at familiarizing children with the courthouse and to teach them more about the justice system. “I really thought that was a great idea because we don’t see a lot of that from a local level — somebody from their community trying to put information out like this for young people,” said Cohen. “So, [that is] kind of why I followed that lead, but I’m really proud of it.” Ultimately, she decided that it would be a simple look into what an average day in the life of a commissioner is. The book depicts the county courthouse, located on The Square in San Marcos, the inside of the courtroom, ribbon cuttings and more. “I talked about how Texas has 254 counties [and] they each have four commissioners and a judge,” said Cohen. “I basically talk first about court. We talk about how we do the Pledge of Allegiance, we do the Texas Pledge, we listen to public comments, we do proclamations … [But] also how we have disagreements sometimes, but that everyone treats everyone very respectfully.” She also noted that the commissioners help communities by bringing services, building parks and trails and funding first responder agencies. Cohen's story is illustrated by Natasha Bolonna, who she found after noticing her illustrations in another book. “I contacted her and she’s been fantastic to work with,” she said. “I sent her a picture of the courthouse, just a photograph and she was able to create what she created, which was wonderful. I think it’s one of my favorite pages … I thought she captured it just brilliantly and I was just so pleased with the work.” There are also photos of the Kyle water tower, Lehman Road and the commissioner’s personal Ford Mustang, which she often drives in parades. Her hope is that children are able to recognize some of the aspects depicted of the county. It took approximately one year to finish the book, the commissioner said, but the community response has been great. A special memory was when she received a hard copy of the book for the first time. “It’s one of those moments where [you’re like], ‘Oh my gosh’ … To feel it and to see it in my hands, I was just so proud. I was personally proud of being able to achieve this because people talk about writing books all the time, but they never do for whatever reasons … I like to see the end result of [a project[ and I don’t like to just keep dreaming about it," the author said. "It’s just overwhelmingly happy.” Cohen is awaiting a shipment of books in the upcoming weeks. Afterwards, parents, schools and students can contact her office at annette.yanez@co.hays.tx.us or visit the office at 5458 FM 2770, Kyle, for free copies. “It’s kind of my contribution to the community of trying to help educate our young people because we do want them to be more involved, make their own opinions about politicians or office holders. Not just what they see or hear, but actually start learning about positions and maybe be a county commissioner one day or a county judge one day, where they can directly impact their communities,” said Cohen.
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