Letters to the Editor: April 13, 2022
Martin County commissioners prefer catering to the wealthy
The hypocrisy of Martin County commissioners when it comes to providing for the needy and catering to the wealthy is unprecedented.
On April 19, commissioners will approve a resolution declaring Stamp Out Hunger Day in Martin County, supporting donations for the House of Hope to fight hunger in our community. But in asking to divert $2 million in federal funds from food and housing assistance to park improvements on Feb. 1, Assistant County Administrator George Stokus said the House of Hope's director told him contributions are not needed because “the amount of money that has been provided to him will, in his opinion, meet if not exceed the need of food insecurity in this county.”
The commission voted unanimously to spend millions for park improvements with no discussion about feeding the hungry.
At the same meeting, Stokus said staff will soon present a solution to the county's affordable housing problem. Instead, staff has been rushing to win approval of Rural Lifestyle amendments to our Comprehensive Plan, with a final vote scheduled April 19.
Commissioners Doug Smith, Harold Jenkins and Ed Ciampi are shamelessly promoting destruction of the Urban Services Boundary to allow agricultural land to be developed as second homes and playgrounds for the super-rich.
Ciampi touted increased tax collections from new multimillion-dollar homes. But the commission is also asking residents who are struggling to pay rent to approve a sales tax increase for the county to buy conservation land. The last time voters approved a sales tax hike to buy conservation land, we got Sailfish Splash Waterpark.
County commissioners and staff clearly have little compassion for residents who face food or housing insecurity, while working to allow large landowners to cash in on the unique character of Martin County established over decades of insisting on responsible growth.
Virginia Sherlock, Stuart
Public education is under vigorous attack for political reasons
Truth. It resides at the intersection of thoughts, beliefs, and reality. Truth grows in its elusiveness as reality is distorted to match established thoughts and beliefs. Truth: The overwhelming majority of educators are wholly invested in equipping students with the knowledge and skills to realize their goals and dreams. Truth: The overwhelming majority of educators are eager to partner with parents in optimizing student learning. Truth: Public education is under vigorous attack by a small subset of individuals who use student learning and our community’s educators as pawns in political mind games and power plays.
Truth: Many educators who are being attacked have grown up here, contributed here, and embraced our community in a host of positive ways, while being accused of not holding the values that build healthy, resilient, and knowledgeable students. Politically motivated insinuations laced with references to critical race theory, indoctrination, and pornography perpetuate an atmosphere of divisiveness, hamper productive and needed dialogue, and distract from the work of student learning. As a lifelong educator, a principal, school board member, state associate executive director at the Florida High School Athletic Association, and a proud community member, the truth is these unfortunate insinuations could not be further from reality.
Truth: Our educators make significant investments in supporting students, and honor parental rights and hopes for their children. I give accolades to all the teachers of our three children who attended public schools as they are now responsible and productive citizens.
Truth: Lately too much time is spent on things other than the truth. Public education is one of the foundations upon which our country was built. Let’s focus on student achievement and building confidence in our children. All of us must keep this as our main focus for our future generations. We owe our children that much.
Peggy Jones, Ed. D., is a member of the Indian River County school board. She lives in Vero Beach.
Speak up for kids during National Child Abuse Prevention Month
On a calendar where nearly every week and month of the year means something special, April stands out in our community of care as something sacred.
This month is National Child Abuse Prevention Month — a time that gets to the very core of our mission work at Communities Connected for Kids. It rings a bell that is largely unheard throughout the rest of the year and serves as a reminder that child abuse still exists in our community.
No one likes to talk about the hard things in life; about the problems that seem too big to fix. But we must keep the bell ringing; we must ensure that for as long as children hurt, someone hears their cry. That's how we move the world to change.
Communities Connected for Kids oversees the child-welfare community in Okeechobee and the Treasure Coast, and we take very seriously our responsibility to raise awareness for the prevention of child abuse.
So, help us celebrate this April. Follow @connectedforkids and share our prevention posts on Facebook. Visit www.cckids.net to attend a community training about how to identify child abuse and how to respond. Or join our MANicure Movement: Paint one nail blue, and tell everyone who asks that one in five children in our community experiences child abuse.
Make it local, make it personal. But whatever you do, make it heard.
Carol Deloach is the chief executive officer of Communities Connected for Kids in Port St. Lucie.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Letters to the Editor: April 13, 2022
