Published: July 17, 2008 05:03 pm            

In Your View — 07/ 20/08

Complaints ignored by Russell mayor

What’s wrong with the mayor of Russell?

I have family who live on Russell Heights, and the hill looks like a city dump. I don’t understand what a taxpayer has to do in order for something to get done in this town.

Several complaints have been filed, but ignored. Why bother taking pride in your yard and home when every other house that surrounds you is like living next door to a dump?

I have been a resident of Kenwood for many years and pay high taxes to this city. Yet practically in my back yard, there are homes that I think need to be condemned — homes that I would be afraid for children to live in, much less play in the junk car and trash-infested lawns.

The mayor of Flatwoods wouldn’t stand for these kind of conditions, but our mayor does nothing. When will the city do something for the folks on Russell Heights who still appreciate a nice yard?

Maybe it’s time for a mayor who cares. I guarantee his neighbors don’t have junk and trash all over their yard!

Melissa Stevens, Russell



Food insecurity high in Kentucky

Food is one of our most important needs. However, the price of food has increased gradually over the past eight years with larger increases during the past two years. This has led to the current conundrum: How do we purchase food when our wages have not increased and the price of petroleum based products, water, energy, transportation, etc. have increased?

In Kentucky, the problem of prevalent food insecurity is so high that in 2006 we were ranked 9th in the nation. The food insecurity affects us all but hits those living in poverty, barely above the poverty line, and the homeless the hardest since 67 percent of the food consumed in the United States comes from California.

The problems resulting from lack of food security will only increase as long as the majority of our food is grown 1,500 miles away.

This is why it's imperative for our elected officials to think outside of the box. We must demand that they quit wasting our tax money paying companies to mow grass, when instead it could be used to increase our food security by growing food locally.

The community-at-large needs to continue the work that began several years ago at the grassroots level. In doing so, we can utilize vacant areas at houses of worship, schools, community centers, retirement homes, homeless and abuse shelters, city parks, day cares, etc. to continue or start a raised bed, conventional, or container garden.

Through crop diversity and rotation, organic and biodynamic farming, and companion planting, there will be no need for herbicides, insecticides, or pesticides — which ultimately do more harm than good.

The gardens will increase the availability of fresh, nutritional, non-processed, natural and/or organic fruit, vegetables, herbs, root crops, and edible flowers, thereby increasing our food security.

Obiora Embry, Lexington



Blazer class plans 20-year reunion

The Paul Blazer Class of 1988 is planning its 20-year reunion for the weekend of Aug. 29-31. We need help locating these classmates:

Donald Howard Arthur, Sharon Baldridge, Anna Lea Barnes, Jacqueline C. Barrow, Timothy Beason, Kevin Berry, Toni Jo Blevins, Daniel P. Bogardus, James D. Branham, Claud Albert Brown, Jr., Kathy Buckland, Stacy Burmeister, Chris Butler, Jeff Carper, Shawn Dale Clark, Linda Colley, Melissa M. Collins, Deanna Crank, Jamie Cranston, Tammy L. Crum, James O. Daniel, Kimberly M. Davis, S. Darrin Egleston, Kristy L. Elliott, Benjamin Elias, Andrew T. Foster, Sandra K. Franklin, Matt French, Ronald David Fultz.

Ronald S. Galloway, Shannon Gibbons, Virgil Griffith III, James N. Hamilton, Michael C. Haney, Rexford M. Hays, Heather R. Henderson, Stacey A. Henry, Melanie Hensley, Melissa Hensley, Teresa Hill, Merlyne Howell, Kevin Lee Justice, Thomas Estill Kazee, Julie Killin, Christopher Tracy Kiser, Joyce Ann Knipp, Kerstin Lambert, Karen K. Larumbe, James O. Lewis, Kathleen Long, Kristopher Todd May, Jade McDonald, Patricia McFarland, Sandra Maynard, James E. Moore, Keith Moore, Robert Allen Moyer, Kevin Ray Nethercutt, Cheryl Lynette Nunley, Katherine Oury, Mary Patterson, Nicholas Lee Patton, Robert S. Perkins, Danny Perrock, Joy L. Poore, Chris Prater.

Michael Reed, Ronall Don Ross, Shelly Ross, Darrell Scott, Richard Scott Shields, Michael Skarbowski, Amanda L. Smith, Susan Stanley, Amy Steen, Tammy Stevens, James Thompson, Sonja Vanhoose, Amelia Amy Ward, Sam Watson, Mark Wheeler, Michelle Wilson, Shane Wilson, Debbie Yates, Donna Yates, Robert D. Young, Angela Zeller.

Our visit our class Website is http://juliethacker.typepad.com/paulblazerclassof1988

Those with information on any of the above classmates are asked to contact Julie Smith-Thacker, (606) 325-3908 or info@juliethackerphotography.com, Missy Quillen Mollet, (606) 831-1136 or Missy.mollett@ky.gov, or Leslie Wellman Hedrick, (606) 922-3209, or Leslie.hedrick@hotmail.com.

Julie Smith-Thacker, Reunion committee, Blazer class of 1988

        

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