STERLING – At the conclusion of Monday night's City Council meeting, Mayor Skip Lee wished everyone a happy Fourth of July.

But he also wanted to deliver a take-home message to members of the public in attendance: Get involved in your communities.

"There is a real crisis in our community," Lee told me in a follow-up conversation. "There are lots of people that serve and do wonderful things ... there is a lot of the same people doing all the work."

Lee wants more young people involved in city affairs and community organizations, and he wants the public to let him and other city leaders know what they can do to get more young people involved.

This demographic will be making decisions in the future, Lee said.

In other words, there are "lots of great people, [but] I see way too much gray," Lee said.

He is concerned about who will step up to fill the void when current leaders decide to step down. Who will run for mayor when and if Lee decides he doesn't want to run again? he wondered.

The mayor also considered whether there was value in creating a mentoring system to encourage young people to get involved in civic affairs. He thought maybe they don't feel like they can make a difference or aren't sure how to get involved.

When I recently met with a group of Sauk Valley Community College students, I asked how many attended council meetings. Some didn't even know where meetings were held or how to get involved.

If young people felt more connected to city affairs while in high school and college, they might be more connected to the city and more likely to become leaders.

New blood and fresh ideas are beneficial to the community. Sometimes it takes a new perspective to think of a different way of doing things.

Lee tied in his call to Wednesday's holiday.

"What you really need to think about is what it took for our forefathers to step up and think outside the box," he said. "There's a need, put some skin in the game and get involved. Do something to fill this need."

Reach Skip and other city leaders at 815-632-6621.

Sauk Valley Media reporter Kiran Sood covers government and happenings in Sterling and Rock Falls. She can be reached at ksood@saukvalley.com - 800-798-4085, ext. 529 - @KiranSood_SVM on Twitter.