Dear Senator Bennet
Dear Editor:
Dear Senator Bennet: Thank you for your response to my expression of concern over the problem with illegal immigrants residing in our country. A bipartisan solution is important for the wellbeing of the country. I am personally in favor of a regulated guest worker program after making it less inviting for illegals to come here by levying heavy fines to employers who hire without proper documentation. Without jobs, the incentive to invade us will be less compelling. I will be watching the Sunday Denver Post to see how you vote on this issue.
Spending by the federal government must be reduced. This can only be accomplished by elimination of some federal agencies. You are an experienced educator. I am sure you can see the logic in returning all authority for running our schools back to local school boards, with oversight by state officials. This is how it was before legislation gave birth to the US Department of Education, a huge bureaucracy probably not envisioned as such by the authors of enabling legislation. Please work for the elimination of the U.S. Department of Education over a period of a few years.
We need a good energy policy, which includes development of all sources, green and conventional. Coal, along with, of course, natural gas, nuclear, and hydraulic must be a primary sources for many years until technology develops means for other resources to become competitive. We don’t need a U.S. Department of Energy, except in a very minor role of running research and providing advice.
The U.S. Federal Highway Administration should be drastically reduced in size and the federal gas tax eliminated. Most of FHWA’s responsibilities consist of gathering in gas tax money raised in the states and passing it back to the states spending several billions of dollars in the process. FHWA’s role should consist of research and advice, along with other minor functions within the US Department of Transportation. States would have the prerogative of raising their gas tax to make up for the lost revenue. (This comes from a civil engineer who began his career at FHWA.)
I shall be interested in reading a response.
Dick Prosence
Meeker
Many thanks
Dear Editor:
I have a lot to be thankful for. First for my Lord and Savior, second for the care I received at Pioneers Hospital. Thank you for Dr. Krueger and Dr. Tec and his staff. I guess I need to be thankful for the UPS driver that will deliver my hospital bill.
Again thank you,
Tom Farris
Meeker
Thank you to libraries, funders, families
Dear Editor:
On Nov. 8 in Craig, Nov. 13 in Rangely and Nov. 14 in Meeker, Connections 4 Kids and Moffat County Youth United Way launched the amazing program Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in Moffat and Rio Blanco counties.
We have been thrilled to have the opportunity to bring this terrific opportunity to our communities’ youngest members thanks to funding through Yampa Valley Community Foundation and the Colorado Department of Human Services. And the response from local families has equaled our enthusiasm — thus far, we have enrolled more than 300 children in Moffat and Rio Blanco counties in Imagination Library so that they can receive a free book in the mail every month until their fifth birthday.
We want to thank Yampa Valley Community Foundation and the Colorado Department of Human Services for funding this program at the local level and Dolly Parton and the Dollywood Foundation for providing the infrastructure for this program at that national level.
Thank you to Moffat County Libraries, Rangely Regional Library and Meeker Public Library for being wonderful partners in the project by hosting the program launches during story times.
Special thanks to our wonderful community readers who shared books from the program with children during these story times: Kay Bivens in Meeker, Rita Reich in Rangely and Kathy Duran, Lila Herod, Randy Looper and Judi Whilden in Craig.
We have been astounded by the response we’ve received from families about this program and are thrilled to be able to get books in the hands of our communities’ young readers. In just eight days, our enrollment percentage of eligible children exceeded what the national organization projects for the end of year two. Because of the overwhelming response, we need to temporarily suspend registration in the program while we seek additional dollars to continue to make this program available locally.
Our goal is to get quality reading material in the hands of our communities’ young readers and build a foundation of literacy in children before they enter classroom doors. Thank you to families for your enthusiasm around this project and for your understanding while we temporarily suspend registration. And thank you to all of our partners for helping us to make Imagination Library a reality for our communities’ children.
Michelle Balleck,
Connections 4 Kids coordinator
Corrie Ponikvar, Moffat County Youth United Way advisor
