Support the Meeker Education Foundation this Colorado Gives Day
Dear Editor:
Colorado Gives Day 2020, scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020, is an opportunity to support local nonprofits across the state through online giving. The Community First Foundation, FirstBank and other community members have created a $1 Million Incentive Fund to promote statewide philanthropy. This fund increases the value of every donation. The Meeker Education Foundation, Inc. is a local nonprofit you can support through Colorado Gives Day at ColoradoGives.org on Dec. 8. You may schedule a donation in advance, as well.
MEF provides staff/student grant awards for academic and enrichment opportunities, classroom and program needs throughout our District. Thanks to its many generous donors for the current school year, MEF has been able to fund grants for the Elementary and Middle Schools’ new Science curriculum, textbooks for Meeker High’s AP History and Sociology courses, MHS’s Drama Program, Meeker Elementary’s Art and Music Programs, camera packages for MHS’s new Yearbook course and other hard copy and digital curricular materials in the Middle and Elementary Schools. The Foundation is very grateful for the funding it has received through Colorado Gives Day in the past.
Meeker Education Foundation
Limit the damage before this is over
Dear Editor:
Mask mandates have proven to be very controversial in Rio Blanco County, but most of the arguments so far have been based on personal liberty versus community responsibility. There is little thought of the economic and fiscal impact of the COVID pandemic on our local businesses and government that so far has not been discussed. A lot of evidence exists that a mask mandate can improve economic outcomes and lower medical costs for businesses, governments, and individuals.
There is potential economic activity sitting on the sidelines. A number of our citizens who are at risk and don’t trust others in the public are staying home. The University of Utah has recently had four professors release a paper where they analyzed credit card transactions before and after states had instituted mask mandates. They found that overall economic activity increased after mask mandates were instituted. https://eccles.utah.edu/news/new-study-statewide-mask-requirements-save-lives-livelihoods/
In my own life, my parents, as well as my mother and father-in-law, have been staying home and avoiding trips and eating out because they are high risk and don’t trust others in the community to take proper precautions. This has accelerated the shift to online purchases rather than spending locally. They have all worked hard to have an enjoyable and healthy retirement, but are afraid that it can be cut short or have the quality impacted by catching COVID. Who is advocating for those people?
Right now there are businesses closed due to this outbreak. This is not opening things up and alone suppresses economic activity at a time when there are still hunters running around town looking for a place to eat. During the last few weeks when there are tourists in town businesses have had to close because of our community spread. It makes for a long, hard winter when a restaurant cannot maximize its income prior to snow falling.
There is also a problem of an uneven playing field. The free market works best if there is an even playing field, but what if we have two businesses that are staffed by people of different risk levels? The one that closes their dining room or restricts it due to greater risk is going to feel a greater hit. Before you attack someone for being more careful, not everyone is willing to die for a few extra dollars.
More recently, the County’s fiscal problems have been in the news. There is a cost from this disease that has a very tangible component. The average hospital stay for COVID costs $35,000 to $45,000, depending on age group. The most expensive group was 51-60-year-olds. Think of the age of a lot of our county employees. Vanderbilt University released a study showing mask mandates reduced hospitalizations. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6947e2.htm
One thing I have learned working at a hospital is that one way or another the insurance companies will come out ahead. They get the first money in and are the last money out at all times and that will hit our county’s, and citizen’s finances. It will hit the county government either through higher future premiums, or more cost to employees. Both of which hurt our local economy. Given the time spent on reducing payroll and benefit costs it would be irresponsible to add more future costs to the employer and/or employee by ignoring a simple solution such as a mask mandate.
It may cause some among us to swallow our pride, but so far it seems the greater voice has been given to those that have no skin in the game, give their feelings the same weight as expert advice, and do their research on Facebook. So far we have made it to this point relatively unscathed. One death is one too many, but let’s not play Russian roulette with more. In a few months we will be able to put most of this behind us. With a vaccine around the corner we will not even have to talk about people masking up outside of an operating room. So, please, let’s not make things harder for our businesses, employers, and citizens and enforce a mask mandate. It will all be over soon, but we can limit the damage done before then.
Jared Harvey
Meeker
Thoughts expressed on opinion pages are exclusively those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of the Herald Times. You are welcome to submit signed letters on matters of local interest to [email protected], mail to PO Box 720, Meeker, CO 81641 or drop off at 304 4th St., Meeker. there is no charge.
DUE TO SPACE CONSTRAINTS, please try to keep SUBMISSIONS 500 words or less.
