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Fire volunteers got railroaded from High Point

As homeowners in the High Point community, we would like to express our collective opinion and dismay at how poorly we have been portrayed in the press lately. We have been portrayed as "old wheezers," told we need to get hobbies, and one of our first responders was told, after successfully performing CPR on a resident, to "go back to his firehouse to his pinochle game." Also, one news account makes reference to our community as a trailer park, not a mobile home community.

First, we commend our volunteer fire department members for their dedication to service, which has been without recognition for the good they have done. We have witnessed firsthand on many occasions the speediness of their response to render first aid and help.

However, due to the improperly handled homeowners board meeting on Sept. 8, our fire department was blocked from even presenting a suitable response to inquiries of inefficiency brought forth by Hernando County officials and Commissioner Diane Rowden. First, the meeting of our board was technically run by those officials, in addition to unscripted audience comments and an impromptu "vote," which was totally out of line.

We had been told ahead that the public could attend but had no right to speak. Why, when this all concerned our safety, well-being and our finances? The meeting was counterproductive, in that what we ended up with was a railroaded termination of our volunteer fire department's service, as was predictable, due to the one-sided presentation from county officials in attendance. There were members of our volunteer fire department who were prevented from even speaking up in defense. Of course, anyone in attendance, based upon what was presented that day, would agree that we do have an issue to address.

The final point we wish to make is, first, as owners in the community, we should have had more facts presented to us prior to all of this going to the general public and the press. Rightly, our board of directors has the right to make decisions on our behalf. However, out of respect and courtesy to the men and women who have been so dedicated, they deserved more than they received that day. They were shortchanged publicly, and the public humiliation is uncalled for.

We went to the meeting to support these people, but circumstances were overwhelmingly against that when we did not have proper representation or control of the meeting by our board of directors.

Family's eviction upsetting

Re: Shelter opens arms, then closes doors, Sept. 11 Times.

I was saddened to read that some of the people brought here from Mississippi had been thrown out of the homeless shelter where they were staying. Then when I saw the pictures of a little 4-year-old who was sitting by dejectedly awaiting for her family to gather their belongings, my heart hurt and I cried for hours.

I don't know the entire circumstances of their being evicted, but having been rescued from our flooded home in the no-name storm in 1993 I can understand their need for a little merry-making. Granted, they broke the rules, but even God gives second chances, and we were instructed to suffer (care for) the little children, not cause them to suffer.

I tracked down this young family and met and talked with them. I treated them with respect, and they returned that to me. The young father showed me the tools donated to him by a local company, which enabled him to work at his trade as a carpenter. A local builder hired him within 24 hours after they arrived here and provides him with transportation. He acted like a kid who had been visited by Santa Claus because he will be able to provide for his family.

The family told me they didn't come here to live off the system or other people, and I found them to be sincere.

I'm hoping they stay here. They may be homeless (temporarily), but they are not friendless.

CLARIFICATION

An editorial published Sunday was not clear about the agenda of a meeting that will be held tonight at the Allen Temple AME Church on Leonard Street in Brooksville. According to organizer Richard Howell, the meeting, which begins at 7 p.m., will be about Hernando County government's plans for the property that once was used by the Department of Public Works. After that, there may be discussion regarding the need for a community center. According to Howell, there is no planned discussion about a proposal to combine a recreation center and Sheriff's Office substation at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and E Jefferson Street.

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[Last modified September 21, 2005, 00:24:18]