Dear Editor
This is in reference to the article on page 2 of the March 28, 2024, edition of this paper titled Commissioner proposes “Owner Friendly” Demolition Ordinance.
According to the article, the county commission received two résumés for the position of County Flood Plain Manager. Instead of scheduling interviews for both of the applicants, each commissioner will review the résumés and then vote on which applicant to hire.
I went to the Pocahontas County Commission Facebook page and watched this part of the meeting to make sure I read this correctly.
I was astounded and disappointed by the blasé attitude our county commission had as they discussed this position and even more astounded and disappointed in the way they have decided to handle the hiring process.
Why no interviews? Why not meet them in person? Will the résumés be verified? Or, is someone already in place for the job and this is just a formality?
Thank you,
Caroline Sharp
Marlinton
Dear Editor,
This is my opinion concerning this proposed ordinance pertaining to dilapidated properties. This is an open letter to the citizens, taxpayers and anyone else with ties to Pocahontas County especially the natives who have spent their lives hammering out a living here.
The first item I would like to address is letting Mr. Rebinski know that we don’t necessarily live like the people in Monongalia County (no offense to them, please) and most like things just as they are.
This is just another form of zoning and trying to gain more control. I personally know of individuals living in dilapidated houses who have no place to go if evicted. Are you going to leave these people homeless in the streets? No doubt it could happen.
Please, voters of our county, be very wary of who you vote for and vote your heart and for our future.
We need good paying jobs here and believe the commission should be spending their time on this and other more important issues.
E. Tim Morris
Bartow
Dear Editor;
It is April 2024 and looking at where America stands regarding illicit drug use and at ongoing trends things are not very encouraging. It is estimated over 110,000 + Americans die of drug overdoses or poisoning ever year not to mention the criminal activity and wasted lives that drug use causes. More than 40% of the many thousands of poor children living in South America that join the drug cartels die violently in less than 10 years. Most of us know individuals who have lost their lives or ruined them because of drug problems and the negative impact it has had on WV culture and families.
Drug deaths in the US are many times that of European countries. Besides the opium prescription debacle that led to the heightened consumption of other illegal drugs, a significant part of the problem causing these deaths is the drug Fentanyl mixed in with other drugs or masquerading as them.
In a number of cases these deaths are actually poisonings when someone takes a single pill believing it to be another drug, that results in a Fentanyl overdose. Many of the chemicals that are used by the Cartels to manufacture Fentanyl are coming from China. The Chinese Communist Party allows this to happen as a form of soft warfare against our country to destroy the fabric of our society. The Communist Party has a long memory, and they consider this poetic justice for what the West did to China in the form of the Opium Wars of the mid 1800s.
So, what can we do to stop this attack against America?
How about realizing that many of us provide the market for these drugs by taking party drugs, more active drug abuse or just tolerating their use. Without this market this problem would not exist. Maybe it is time for Americans to reevaluate their own personal conduct and the rest of us not to accept this behavior. The war on drugs, to include locking drug abusers up has been a failure as has further legalization and will continue to be one if we don’t have the intelligence and will power to address the root causes of the problem.
So, if you use party drugs or tolerate their use are you willing to take responsibility for the deaths of 110,000 US citizens every year, is getting high worth it? Maybe it’s time for a change at the grass roots level and the end to the live and let live attitude that in many cases ignores drug abuse and a lifestyle change by individuals that dries up the market. So is this idea the solution? Only part of it.
What is needed is a multifaceted approach because what we are currently doing is not working.
Joe Kaffl
Hillsboro
Pocahontas County
Board of Education
Attn: Dr. Sue Hollands-worth, President
Re: Request for Meeting Concerning Proposed 2024-2025 Budget Cuts
Dear Dr. Hollandsworth and Members of the Board:
The Local School Improvement Council (LSIC) of Pocahontas County High School writes to express deep concern regarding the rumors of proposed budget cuts for the 2024-2025 academic year. If these cuts, as indicated by the positions that have received reduction in force notices, come to fruition, they stand to dismantle vital teaching positions and erode some of our most esteemed academic programs. Understanding the gravity of the possible loss of these positions and the profound impact they will have on our school community, the LSIC respectfully requests an opportunity to engage in dialogue with the Board before any definitive action is taken.
In accordance with West Virginia Code 18-58-2, the LSIC formally requests that the Board schedule a meeting before April 12, 2024 to provide insight into the budgetary constraints identified and the anticipated repercussions of the proposed cuts. As you well know, the LSIC is mandated by West Virginia code to create a dialog with “parents, students, school employees, business partners and other interested parties” that addresses issues affecting the High School’s “academic performance, curricular, resources, and the capacity for school improvement.” Regrettably, the LSIC finds itself unable to fulfill its statutory obligations as we have received no information regarding the proposed cuts or their implications for the high school’s curriculum in the upcoming academic year.
The LSIC finds itself shrouded in uncertainty regarding this matter, with news of the possible cuts spreading rapidly throughout the county since their revelation. In response, some of our students have engaged in protests, resulting in suspensions, while our dedicated teachers grapple with uncertainty surrounding their professional futures. Additionally, distressed parents have approached LSIC members seeking guidance, pondering the prospect of relocating their children to neighboring counties for high school due to the proposed cuts.
Our community looks to the LSIC for assistance and answers during this tumultuous time, yet we find ourselves ill-equipped to provide support due to the absence of pertinent information. We earnestly implore the Board to extend its guidance and cooperation to the LSIC, enabling us to fulfill our legal obligations and serve the best interests of our school community.
We eagerly anticipate receiving an invitation to meet with the Board on or before April 12, 2024. Thank you in advance for your responsiveness to these pressing concerns.
Sincerely,
PCHS LSIC
Cindy Solak, Co-President/Teacher Representative
Tabby McCoy, Co-President/Parent Representative
Casey Griffith, Secretary/Teacher Representative
Patricia Felton, Parent Representative
Tonya Pollack, Parent Representative
Andrew Friel, Teacher Representative
Ruthana Beezley, At-Large Member
Josh Hardy, At-Large Member
Cierra Sharp, Student Representative
Ellena Bauserman, Student Representative
Joseph Van Meter, Student Representative
Benjamin Workman, Student Representative
Joseph Riley, Principal
Christine Campbell, Assistant Principal
Linda Beverage, Guidance Counselor
Lois Wilfong, Communities in Schools
