Local HEROES Clean Water

Dear WCG Readers,I adopted a soldier in Afghanistana couple of months ago, and have beensending letters and care packages tohim. (And I am loving it.) I noticed lastweek on the Soldier’s Angels websitethat the count of soldiers waiting foradoption went waaaaay up. (We weredown to about 30.)Today I received the email below..I know from the extensive research Idid that packages from home mean somuch to them.You can look at any photos of ourfighting soldiers on many websitesand there will be at least one or two ina series that show them with packagesfrom home and big, big smiles. If youwant to check it out, try Ron Tabor’sblog before he left FOB Lightening. (Ifound it by looking at FOB Lighteningwebsite.)Packages and letters from home arethe highlight of their day, and they areprecious.I also want to say that I have firsthand knowledge that an awful lot ofthe soldiers get little or no emotionalsupport from home, and with thecurrent financial climate, this year hasto be especially bad for them. Imaginewhat some good snacks, a magazineor book, or a global calling card fromAT & T could do for you if you werethousands of miles from home.If you decide to join, use thewww.soldiersangels,org link. Itonly takes about 24 hours to get aname assigned. This is a ‘duration’commitment. If you sign on, you willbe providing a link to home until yoursoldier returns stateside.(Also there are other ways to help onthe regular website for Soldiers Angelsthat you can make a difference if youwant to do something but cannot fullycommit to this.)Th a n k you, my f r iend s, forconsidering this project.CarolEditor:Wh i le wa l k i ng i n dow ntow nGuerneville recently, I couldn’t helpbut notice what an eyesore the MDFood building (where the day workersgather) has become (one of many,actually). There is no longer anylandscaping in the median strip (gee...umm...could it be due to daily trompingby twenty or thirty pairs of feet?),there is litter all over the place...what amess! After talking with the businessowner (Menghal Dhillo, 546-7500)and the buliding manager (Ted atNexus properties, 769-5280), I realizedthat they are caught between a rockand a hard place. Apparently, theyfinally stopped trying to maintain theproperty, because anything they do issimply destroyed by the gentlemen thathang out there on a daily basis. Whyis this ‘hanging out’ being allowed?Guerneville has enough problems withdrunken, drugged out riff-raff that areripe for the Jerry Springer show. Whatin hell is going on in Guerneville? Itused to be delightfully tacky; now, it’sjust tacky.Peter JamesGuernevilleWell, Peter, you inspired an article - seeWilling to Work. Everything I learned isthat it’s hard to change decades of habits, butyou can try. And the place to start is withthe people who hire the laborers off the street.Send them to Labor Centers - listed in thearticle. These centers take the pressure offboth the employers as well as the laborers,people are treated with respect and everyonebenefits. Anyone willing to work is welcome,they keep records of skills and conduct,provide classes and services and help ourtowns in many ways. - VTo Readers across West CountyA rumor is circulating West Countythat El Molino High School may closenext year due to enrollment and budgetwoes. This is simply not true! Thestate budget crisis will likely impactour District in a number of ways, butwe are not considering closing anyof our WSCUHSD schools. In thesedifficult times, we need to keep workingtogether to maximize studentenrollment and continue deliveringoutstanding educational programs tostudents across West County.If you hear this rumor, please doyour part to politely set the recordstraight.Thankss!Keller McDonald,WSCUHSD SuperintendentLETTERS cont’d on page 4Dream as if you’ll live forever;live as if you’ll die today.1/15/09 - www.westcountygazette.com - 3