Rep. Connolly wants you to tell him a story

Amid the failures and tales of a public dissatisfied with federal workers, success stories often go unnoticed. Rep. Gerry Connolly wants to hear those stories.

As Public Service Recognition Week wound down, the Virginia Democrat announced the creation of a dedicated email address -- ThankAFed@mail.house.gov -- for the people to submit stories of public servants who went above and beyond the call of duty.

"The inspiration for this project was hearing firsthand from constituents about stories of good governance that are compelling, yet lack the characteristics of scandal or conflict that so often make good headlines," Connolly said.

Connolly’s office, which will monitor the new account, said constituents have already sent in many stories that defy the “frequent stereotype of lazy and inept government bureaucrats.”

Will trolls use the account to lob spam or hate mail the government’s way?

“[T]o date, the positive has far outweighed a few negative submissions, and I am pleased that we have already received detailed responses from individuals that highlight and describe precisely the types of best practices that we are interested in learning more about," Connolly told FCW.

Connolly added that he hopes the lessons gleaned from the stories will lead not just to back-patting praise for certain public servants, but to the identification of new best practices to improve civil service.