Letters to the Editor Policy

Calling Our Community

Brianna Doucette, the 12-year old girl who drowned in Drinker Creek on February 18 is the daughter of our employee, Randy Douglas of Susquehanna, PA.

We have set up a benefit fund for Brianna Doucette’s family, to pay for her funeral expenses at Penn Star Bank. Donations can be made at any branch. Donations may also be sent to Randy Douglas, C/O Endless Mtn. Stone Co., P.O. Box 273, Susquehanna, PA 18847.

Sincerely,

Donna Coleman

Susquehanna, PA

Forever In Our Hearts

The Lance Leinauer Memorial Golf Tournament has been a success for years. We have helped a number of local students go off to college with the scholarships from the proceeds of this tournament. In the year 2007 we did not hold the tournament, but there is money remaining in the account. With the intention being to help people in our community, we have decided with the recent tragedy so close to home that the money should be given to the family of Brianna Doucette. Brianna was the sixth grade girl who drowned in Drinker Creek on Monday, February 18. This is a horrible tragedy, and we feel the need to help the family as best as we can. We appreciate all that has been done in the past, and we'd like to continue helping.

Thank you to everyone who played a part in raising this money throughout the years. Once again, you are helping a family in need.

Our sincere sympathy goes to Brianna's family and friends, and Lance will forever be in our hearts.

Sincerely,

Family and Friends

Of Lance Leinauer

Back On Track

The Susquehanna Community Development Association (SCDA) founded in 2001, is a non-profit, volunteer-based community action organization structured to assist in the renewal of our business district and neighborhoods, while improving the quality of life for families in the Susquehanna community.

Over the past several years the SCDA has enjoyed much success putting our community “Back on Track”. Working with various committees, the local government and state agencies, Susquehanna’s business district has achieved a Pennsylvania “Main Street affiliated” status. This has brought $70,000.00 in matching façade for our downtown business owners. There is currently $25,000 available for new projects. In 2006, the SCDA partnered with The Trehab Center and has successfully achieved a Pennsylvania DCED “Elm Street” status for the neighborhoods directly surrounding the Susquehanna Business district. The “Elm Street” program will bring $250,000.00 a year for five years for neighborhood improvements in the form of sidewalks, housing façade grants, acquisition and demolition funding, and public improvements projects. In fall of 2007, Trehab and the SCDA had removed the blighted building at Broad and Main St., completed a welcome-gateway project on Franklin Ave., awarded four housing façade grants and begun the Erie Ave sidewalk project. This project will be completed in the spring with decorative planting and fencing. The next round of funding will include four additional housing façade grants along with sidewalks and planting for Franklin Ave. and a portion of portion of Washington St.

Over the past six months, SCDA committee members have volunteered over 1,200 hours improving our community. The Parks & Recreation committee continues to provide a healthy environment for youth activities by maintaining and improving the Frank J. Reddon Park. They have also been busy working on a riverfront park project that will benefit all of our area residents, neighboring communities and visitors by offering healthy recreational opportunities.

Our events committee has sponsored our sixth annual Home Town Days event, and welcomed many former residents back to Susquehanna. They organize the tree lighting ceremony and breakfast with Santa, while making our downtown festive by decorating for Halloween and Christmas. This year, the SCDA hosted our first annual County Harvest of the Arts celebration which featured the talents of regional artists along with a countywide youth art show, street performances by local musicians, and the local theater company.

The SCDA also recognizes the importance of a safe, clean and green community and has been working with the borough to promote increased code enforcement and introduced a vacant building ordnance for consideration. They will also be working with the borough for an two additional blight removal projects in 2008 which will vastly improve the appearance and safety for the families in these neighborhoods. Our design committee has been working with residents for public improvement projects while the Garden Club continues to volunteer their time beautifying the business district with downtown gardens.

The economic committee has been working with Trehab for the Station House renovation project that will begin this April. They have recently completed a business/residential recruitment package that is available to banks and real estate agents. They have also introduced tax incentives to assist the municipality in its quest for business and neighborhood revitalization with the results of renewed interest in the area.

We have made a lot of progress putting our community “Back on Track,” but still have a lot of work ahead of us. Our community can only continue on its positive path by working together for a better quality of life. We hold a number of yearly fundraising events, but still need to rely on your support and generosity and ask that you consider a 2008 membership.

You can find an SCDA membership form in this week’s County Transcript, or pick one up at People’s National Bank, Pennstar Bank or Reddon’s Pharmacy. For more information about the SCDA, our programs or volunteer opportunities, please call 853-5016.

Sincerely,

Gerald Walker

SCDA, Chairman

Exposing Lies On Taxes

Not long ago, a visitor came to Montrose whose name I cannot mention. Neither will I state his business here. But this person notably stressed one of the pet issues of economic elitists: elimination of the Estate/Inheritance Tax, wrongly referred to as "the Death Tax".

Politicians have been conning us for years about the alleged threat to small business and the family farm posed by the inheritance tax. But the fact is, there is not one documented instance of a family farm ever being lost to this tax! Our nameless visitor stated that a family farm might be worth $600,000. This is well below the $2,000,000 exclusion, something the nonentity was unaware of or chose to cover up. Any farm worth more than 2 mil is not a family farm – it's Agribusiness.

The Estate/Inheritance Tax was instituted to undermine hereditary aristocracy. Inherited, unearned wealth all too frequently ruins those who receive it. The tax provides an incentive for the superrich to be more charitable. And if it is eliminated, it would only increase the deficit by tens of billions. For all these reasons, many of the superrich – the less selfish ones – have spoken out against its elimination. But it remains a favorite bugaboo of certain ideologues who don't seem to realize that their ideas have been tested and proven lacking.

Sincerely,

Stephen Van Eck

Rushville, PA

The Cost Of War

As long as we keep pouring that money down the drain in Iraq, we'll never solve our economic woes.  We won't have the money to take care of people hurt by the economic downturn, or to invest in making our economy more competitive. The war in Iraq is costing Americans more than $338 million a day, which we can ill afford in this time of economic recession.

 Let your elected officials and those running for office know that you think we should switch our priorities to helping those at home.   This skyrocketing debt will be a bigger and bigger drag on the economy – slowing recovery and burdening future generations.  That money could be spent to help out the folks who're hurting most now.  For less than what we're spending on the war, we could pay for affordable housing for hundreds of thousands of families, preventive healthcare for children and adults, and scholarships to help with education.  Let your vote count!

Sincerely,

Nancy Ross

Uniondale, PA

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR POLICY
Letters To The Editor MUST BE SIGNED. They MUST INCLUDE a phone number for "daytime" contact. Letters MUST BE CONFIRMED VERBALLY with the author, before printing. Letters should be as concise as possible, to keep both Readers' and Editors' interest alike. Your opinions are important to us, but you must follow these guidelines to help assure their publishing.

Thank you, Susquehanna County Transcript

©