Thanks for those who helped with food drive

The city letter carriers of the National Association of Letter Carriers, Branch No. 934 in Salisbury, have completed our 31st annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. We collected over 10,500 pounds of donations, which we gave to our local Salvation Army and Rowan Helping Ministries food pantries.

We would like to express our gratitude to our co-workers — rural letter carriers, clerks, maintenance and management — who delivered flyers, collected the donations and helped to coordinate the food drive.

We also extend our gratitude to:

• Audrey Eudy and Rowan County United Way

• Kristine Wiles and Rowan Helping Ministries

• Captain Sarah Madison and The Salvation Army of Rowan County

You and your volunteers are an amazing group of people who chose to spend their weekend in hard labor to help the needy in our community. Mere words cannot express the gratitude you deserve from everyone you’ve assisted.

Thanks to the good people at the Salisbury Post for giving us coverage and helping us get the word out.

Thanks to Mario Clark and Jessica Willis from Neighborhood TV for covering our event and putting us on the World Wide Web.

Above all, thanks to each and every one who donated. Your generosity helps to fill stomachs and hearts. You are the Soul and Spirit of Salisbury.

— Kim Lane

Editor’s Note: Lane is Stamp Out Hunger coordinator for Branch No. 934, N.A.L.C.  If you missed the food drive and want to help, call the Rowan County United Way at 704-633-1802. The need is great.

Voucher idea bad for state’s students

I’m writing as a concerned grandparent of children that attend public school in North Carolina and myself the product of an excellent public school education.

Recently, Governor Cooper has called a state of emergency in our public schools due to a plan by the GOP led state legislators to decrease funding in the state budget for public schools — including charter schools while at the same time using those funds to add additional vouchers for private education.

Private schools do not have to meet the same standards as public schools and don’t have to take students with disabilities and can discriminate on the basis of race, status or ability. They do not have to provide lunch or public transportation.

Vouchers fail rural communities and students by depleting already challenged public funds due their low tax base. Some rural communities don’t even have a private school and those tax dollars could be used for a private school in a completely different district.

The children of North Carolina deserve a fully funded budget as set forth in the state constitution and not an expansion of private school vouchers.

— Tracy Romak

Salisbury

Public education would suffer under GOP-led bills

Public education is the bedrock of our democracy. The Republican-led N.C. Legislature seems determined not just to undermine our public schools, but to destroy them.

Proposed SB405 and HB823 would drastically expand the “Opportunity Scholarships” giving private school vouchers even to wealthy families. Yet the Legislature refuses to release the funding necessary to provide a “sound, basic education” for every child, as stated in our N.C. Constitution, as court-mandated through the Leandro decision.

Private schools don’t have to meet the same academic standards as public schools. They don’t have to accept students with disabilities and can discriminate on the basis of race. They can teach their version of religion (75% are religious) and are not required to provide transportation or student lunches. Even with a voucher, many middle- and lower-income families, especially in rural areas, would not be able to afford a private school.

This effort to de-fund public education would take $2.23 billion of public money (our taxes) from our public schools over the next 10 years. Teachers would receive little or no pay raises, up-to-date books for students would not be purchased, buildings would fall into disrepair or be forced to close, and communities would lose important centers of civic life.

As a taxpayer and concerned citizen I call on Sen. Carl Ford, Rep. Harry Warren, Rep. Kevin Crutchfield and Rep. Julia Howard representing Rowan County to stand up for all children, giving them what they need to thrive by fully funding our public schools through the court-mandated Leandro decision.

Gov. Roy Cooper has rightfully declared the voucher expansion a “state of emergency” in public education. As citizens we need to also sound the alarm.

— Eileen Hanson-Kelly

Salisbury