Letters to the Editor
Opinion
Published: October 05, 2012
Sincere thanks
To the Editor:
On behalf of Blanchard Community Library, I would like to extend a very heartfelt thank you to the wonderful businesses and individuals who contributed to the tremendous success of our 2012 Teen Summer Reading Program.
Altrusa International of Ventura, Maria Sust Bombara, Ellen Brokaw, Buena Lanes, Joyce and Ernest Carlson, Crown Disposal, Mali De Silva, Fosters Freeze, Friends of Blanchard Community Library, Golf ‘N Stuff, Margie Greenwald, Shirley and Robert Hargarten, Heart Song, Mary Alice Orcutt Henderson, Elaine Hunt, Legoland, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Lakers, Karin Lyders, McDonald’s, William Orcutt, Paschen Management Corporation, Anita Pulido - REMAX Realtor, Carolyn Purdy, Scott Rushing-Rushing Real Estate, Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, Santa Clara Valley Bank, Santa Clara Valley Knights of Columbus, Santa Paula Super Store, Skating Plus, Cathy and Dick Sorenson, Sports Authority, Subway, Summer Schaefer, Target Ventura West, Paully Thiara, Linda and Norm Wilkinson, and Gary Zapparelli - Zapparelli’s Family Pizzeria all donated so generously and enabled us to have such a marvelous and rewarding summer program for our teens.
We are especially grateful to Karin Lyders and her amazing efforts in collecting and donating gifts for months, and to Carol Hardison, Cathy Sorenson, and Linda Spink who kindly assisted with party set up, refreshments, and steadfast encouragement.
This year we had 135 young adult participants who read a total of 163,950 pages over the summer! We are certain that our teen readers were inspired to read and read and read due to the terrific array of prizes provided by these incredible donors. We hope that our teenagers will continue to read all year long and enjoy the vast pleasures of reading for the rest of their lives.
Thank you again to our great sponsors for their wonderful support in encouraging our young adults to “Dream Big, Read!” They have truly made a difference in our community and made our summer reading program dreams come true!
Ilene Gavenman
Children’s and Young Adult Librarian
Blanchard Community Library
Santa Paula
Keep the team
To the Editor:
Santa Paula has faced many tough issues in the past few years and we have been fortunate to have the dedicated and hard working members of the city council to manage and chart our way through them…. Let’s keep the current experienced and knowledgeable team intact... Join with us and vote for Jim Tovias and Fred Robinson on November 6th…
Phil and Kathy Harvey
Santa Paula
Repay the people?
To the Editor:
The city council is deliberating the sale of the old 10-acre sewer plant to Crown disposal. The price tag will be around $2 million dollars. Another option is a long-term lease to Crown. There are compelling arguments for either the sale or lease. It appears the council is leaning towards selling.
So the real question is: How is the city going to spend the $2 million dollars? The current council plan is to put the $2 million dollars into the general fund for discretionary short-term spending. They would also create a reserve fund for the city manager. Really?
How about returning the $2 million back to the sewer ratepayers? After all, we the people own the land. Why not send out rebates? Or, why not use this $2 million for long-term spending that will last for 10 or 20 years? How about fixing city streets, sidewalks, and curbs? Why don’t we upgrade our parks?
Land is a long-term asset. Any proceeds from the sale of land should go into long-term projects. It will be a blunder for the council to waste this long-term money on short-term discretionary spending. Furthermore, the city manager is an unelected position. To set up a non-transparent reserve account for any unelected city manager is unwise. Remember Bell, CA?
The city council needs to provide specific details on how they will spend the $2 million. They need to outline specific projects that will give long-term benefits to SP. The council should outline all their spending in advance. However, if the council still insists on putting the money into the general fund and city manager reserve fund, then leasing the property to Crown might be the better alternative.
John Wisda
Santa Paula
YES on Measure M
To the Editor:
John and I have been involved in the Educational Facilities Planning for most of our careers. We agree that merging our school districts is logical and will make it possible for our schools to operate more efficiently and cost-effectively. The Unified District will get “most bang for its buck!”
Specifically, there will be improved buying power for everyday supplies as well as long-term purchase of furniture and equipment. There can be more efficient short term and long term Facilities Planning and more opportunities for sharing of common facilities thereby omitting duplication of cost, time and effort.
We love Santa Paula and want to give our children the best possible facilities and equipment to support their education.
Susan Kulwiec, A.S.I.D.
John Kulwiec, A.I.A.
Kulwiec Group/Architects, Inc.
Santa Paula
L, L & M
To the Editor:
I love our library. I love the warmth that exudes from Ilene Gavenman, the Children’s Librarian, and the friendly front desk staff. It is truly one of the “hidden jewels” of Santa Paula, and I’m excited about having an opportunity to vote for Linda Spink, Lisa Sorenson, and Maureen Coughlin to serve on the Library Board of Trustees.
Every time I walk into the library I see adults giving and receiving tutoring, using the computers, and browsing the stacks. I also usually see young children sitting in the adorable little playhouse, curled up with a good book. Often, after school hours, I observe older students gathering to study, visit, and enjoy acting and reading clubs. Our beloved Blanchard Community Library is a virtual beehive of activity!
If you love our library – especially the programs geared toward our youth, such as Story Hour, Teen Scene, homework helps, etc. – please consider voting for Linda, Lisa, and Maureen (L, L & M). Linda Spink and Lisa Sorenson are both lifetime residents of Santa Paula, and Maureen Coughlin has lived here for over twenty years and raised her family here. All three women share a passion for our library and are eager to represent all Santa Paulans – the taxpayers – on the Board.
Linda, Lisa, and Maureen are excited about working with library employees and the many committed volunteers to make our library even better than it now is. They want to continue existing programs, improve access to already existing resources, help develop ways to help employees be more efficient and accountable, and bring outside grant money to our library. Let’s give L, L & M a chance to see what they can do for our lovely community of Santa Paula.
Jan Becher
Santa Paula
Re: Religious freedom at stake!
To the Editor:
It has been over 3 weeks since the Democrat Convention of 2012 was aired on national TV. I remember seeing Caroline Kennedy take the stage after a number of people had completed their skits. Since then there has been very little response from the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church in America to the type of Catholicism which Kennedy was displaying for the hyenas that had gathered in North Carolina. Yes, according to Caroline Kennedy she believes in abortion which is to justify her twisted translation of “a woman’s right to decide”. Obama’s HHS Secretary, Kathleen Sibelius, another twisted and manipulative Catholic thinks, breathes and repeats the same propaganda. Yes, the “Emotive Dictator”, Barack Obama is using the Saul Alinsky tactics; “divide and conquer”! He sends out disloyal Catholics to imitate Catholics so as to condition unaware Catholics into believing and molding a fictitious model of a Catholic. At one time I was almost giving up hope that our clergy had been eternally deceived by Barack Obama but last Sunday I heard encouragements in St. Mary Magdalen’s, Fr. Passos homily of the virtue of staying true to our faith. So you ardent Catholics out there that can sincerely vote this for man’s re-election, how do you reconcile Obama’s assault on our religious freedom and your mistaken belief that you’re only supporting a woman’s right to choose over her child right to live? Oh yes, as a man we’re not allowed to criticize women and their ability to be an accessory to murder. That may be true of the emasculated 21st century male but fortunately there are some of us who believe to the contrary and profess accordingly!
Andrew F. Castaneda
Santa Paula
Measure M – for the kids’ sake
To the Editor:
As a Ventura County community member I teach hundreds of Santa Paula students from all six Santa Paula Elementary Schools about locally relevant agriculture, where their food comes from and how it is grown. In addition, I connect them to a farm in their own backyard, Limoneira. The benefits of connecting kids to farms and the outdoors are well documented and obvious.
Santa Paula is an amazing community with many dedicated teachers, administrators and strong programs, and many of the students are doing well – but not all of them. And no child should be left behind. Personally I know not everyone who lives in Santa Paula chooses to send their children to Santa Paula schools.
For the sake of all the kids, schools need to serve our residents in order to build revenue and in turn, which will build successful and distinctive programs.
With unification, it will be possible to develop a coordinated K-12 program and to link successful programs like the very popular Ag Education program for elementary school kids to the outstanding High School Ag Academy. The Unified District will be able to develop a distinctive K-12 educational program that will better serve Santa Paula kids, and will help attract students and families to Santa Paula schools.
Unification makes it possible to improve the program. Join me in voting YES on Unification and MEASURE M.
Mary Maranville
SEEAG.org
Community Agricultural Educator
CREEC Coordinator – Region 8
Ojai
NO on Prop 32
To the Editor:
Corporate money dominates our political system. Billionaires like the Koch brothers are gaining more and more power. In California, they are trying to silence middle-class workers with Prop 32, the “Special Exemptions Act”.
My wife and I have owned a small business for 28 years and consider ourselves political moderates. Proposition 32 is deceptively advertised as “campaign finance reform”. Its corporate backers claim that it gets corporate money out of politics. In reality, all it does is silence workers while placing only phony restrictions on corporate lobbyists and Super PACs.
Prop 32 would severely handicap unions who have promoted benefits such as minimum wages and safety for both members and non-members. It’s well to realize that without unions we might all be working for $6 an hour, and small business owners cannot prosper unless workers have money to spend. The Los Angeles Times has called Prop 32 a “fraud to end all frauds.” The Hill (Newspaper) called it “Citizens United on steroids.”
Please don’t be fooled by this trickery. VOTE NO ON PROP 32. And please help others to understand what this deceptive proposition is really about.
Delton Lee Johnson
Santa Paula
No-fault city government
To the Editor:
It is very important that all the voters in this coming City Council election remember that the two City Council members that are running for re-election were not on the City Council when these decisions were made, for the sewer/water issues!
We all know that the sewer system had to be replaced as far back as the 1990s and at that time did not seem to be a priority for our City Council. As time progressed it became a priority and had to be dealt with ASAP or we would encounter as a city costly penalties. The City Council then dealt with the problem as they saw fit.
That being said here we are!! Our present City Council as they sit are trying to run this city as a business, checks and balances. Their goal is what is best for the city as a whole, without any self-serving agendas.
It is very interesting that there is still a small group of residents that feel they can make choices and decisions about who they want on city staff! I thank you Rick Cook for taking the initiative to speak up and let the people know what has transpired. Mr. Fontes I as a citizen appreciated the explanation of the situation with the wastewater plant and that you and the City Council have been actively pursuing solutions to this very important issue!
It affects all of us including our City Council as individuals!! Let us not start all over again we have a very sound and productive City Council we as voters need to keep our City Council intact!!
Vote and THINK about what your vote will mean!
Maiya Herrera
Santa Paula
Vote for the Library
To the Editor:
The Blanchard Community Library has served the families of Santa Paula for over a century. For over a decade, the library has served my own family well, from research material for school projects to the annual summer reading program. The staff is helpful and knowledgeable. In November, there will be three excellent candidates on the ballot for the Library Board of Trustees: Maureen Coughlin, Lisa Sorensen, and Linda Spink. All three candidates are passionate about continuing and improving the wonderful service that the library provides. They will bring new ideas and energy to the Board as they look towards making improvements to the library building and to the services it provides in the coming years. These candidates have my support and I hope yours, too.
The November ballot will also contain Measure U for library funding. The measure does NOT increase our taxes, it only gives the Blanchard Community Library the authorization to use the existing parcel tax for their funding. Please vote YES on Measure U.
Cathy Fernandez
Santa Paula
November 6th is very important to Santa Paula
To the Editor:
We are fortunate to have a city council team that is using good economic judgment and is keeping us solvent. So many of California’s cities are bankrupt! We sometimes need to be reminded of our past mistakes in order that we don’t repeat them. One mistake that we know that was made by past administrations was our allowing a disproportion number of tax sheltered low-income units built by Cabrillo Economic Development Company. This resulted in creating a big demand on city services without taxes review to cover their cost. Now a candidate running for city council, Martin Hernandez is supported by Cabrillo! ‘HELLO’! We need to be careful not to allow our past mistakes be repeated. “If we don’t learn from our past mistakes - we may have to repeat them”. When Mr. Martin Hernandez made the statement that “the 1.8 million deficit was created to award the refuse contract to Crown”.
At the time the city council was addressing the issue of privatizing the refuse contract they did NOT know who would make a bid. Mr. Martin Hernandez is not the type of leadership we need in Santa Paula.
David Kaiser
Santa Paula
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