Council should not subsidize nonprofits
To the editor:
Just a few months ago, Lawrence Township Council passed a 10 percent budget increase. I voted "no" on that budget because I believe that if taxpayers have to trim their personal budgets, than council should do the same.
I’m sorry to say that my council colleagues demonstrated their disregard for citizens’ hard-earned tax dollars, once again. The council approved a resolution authorizing an unspecified quantity of "in-kind services" and $17,000 to be spent on behalf of the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail Corporation by a vote of 4 to 1. This group is seeking a $25,000 grant from the State that requires 20 percent matching funds.
First, 20 percent equals $5,000, not $17,000. So, why is the council awarding an additional $12,000? Secondly, why are Lawrence residents being forced to subsidize an organization that’s actively engaged in its own fundraising? Other Lawrence-based nonprofits have applied for and been awarded the very same grant without government assistance. No resolutions. No tax dollars. And no taxpayer-subsidized in-kind services.
These nonprofits have produced their own matching funds the old fashioned way: through charitable contributions and volunteered time. These organizations have the community support necessary to meet their 20 percent obligations. If another nonprofit doesn’t, why is local government picking up the tab?
Rick Miller
Carter Road
The writer is a member of the Lawrence Township Council
Help citizen soldiers and their families
To the editor:
In these busy days of the holiday season, many of us are filled with joy and happiness to be with friends and families. But during this time of festivities, it is important to remember those who are less fortunate and who need your help. That is why, along with GX Magazine, a colleague and I formed Citizen Soldier Family Support Foundation, an approved IRS non-profit nationwide foundation to provide financial support to our citizen soldiers of the National Guard and all other Reserve Branches of the military and their families.
Not only are many soldiers deployed overseas, but also many have provided support on the Gulf Coast after this year’s devastating hurricanes. While many soldiers were providing support after the hurricanes, other Guardsmen were struggling to salvage what was left of their homes in the hurricane ravaged towns and cities.
Our nonprofit organization, Citizen Soldier Family Support Foundation, supports all National Guard forces, reservists and their families, but we are faced with a special circumstance and immediate need of helping those impacted by the hurricanes. In Louisiana alone, many National Guard forces returned to nothing after serving in Iraq; their homes destroyed and their families living in shelters. We receive desperate calls on a daily basis from soldiers and their families who are sleeping on floors in their only outfit of clothes to wear. They have lost all of their personal belongings and most do not have jobs to return to as their employers were also put out of business by the hurricanes. The federal government is doing all they can, but unfortunately it is not enough, nor is it happening quickly enough.
The disasters of this year are simply too great and the resources too scarce. In the meantime, the strain on our "Hometown Heroes" is rapidly increasing as they continue to be called upon to serve more than ever before. In fact, a number of National Guard from Mississippi has been called up for an immediate deployment overseas.
Requests for financial support pour in everyday and have grown to well over $2 million. If we are going to be able to support our citizen soldiers we need your help. With your help of a donation of $25, $50, $100 or more, we hope to be able to continue to help these proud men and women and their families. We are a nationwide 501(c)3 non-profit foundation and all contributions are tax-deductible. One-hundred percent of the funds raised from your tax-deductible donations will be immediately used to help purchase basic household items including food, clothing and beds.
You can make a donation on our Web site at www.csfamilysupport.org or send a check or money order to Citizen Soldier Family Support Foundation, Inc., c/o Molly Johnson, Executive Director, 13359 N. Highway 183, Suite B-406, PMB 227, Austin, TX 78750.
On behalf of all of the "Hometown Heroes" and their families, I thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Gordon M. Price
Bennington Drive
Smoke-free workplaces benefit all residents
To the editor:
There’s no filter for the truth, and the truth is secondhand smoke is killing New Jersey citizens. New Jersey needs to stop killing us, and pass the Smoke Free Air Act.
I survived a massive heart attack at age 34. Since that time I have survived numerous cardiac catheterization procedures as well as angioplasty, stent and more serious cardiac procedures. I live with an implanted defibrillator and pacemaker. My doctor has told me to avoid tobacco smoke at all costs. The effects of secondhand smoke could kill me.
As an American Heart Association board member and heart attack survivor, I and the American Heart Association join with New Jersey BREATHES, a statewide New Jersey tobacco control coalition comprised of more than 45 leading state, health, non-profit and civic organizations, to urge passage of the New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act before the end of the current legislative session.
Being in a smoke-filled room is worse than smoking a cigarette, says the American Heart Association. The smoke from the tip of a cigarette is twenty times more dangerous than what a smoker inhales. I shouldn’t have to risk my life to enjoy a performance at a nightclub, a meal at certain restaurants, or a game of bowling. My friends, family members and neighbors working in these establishments should not have to risk their health or lives simply to earn a living. All employees working in any New Jersey business deserve a healthy and safe, smoke-free workplace.
During the past decade or so that New Jersey has discussed various forms of clean indoor air or smoke-free air legislation, the American Heart Association and The Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids estimate that nearly 19,000 people in New Jersey have died during that time due to the effects of secondhand smoke.
Stop the killing. Pass the New Jersey Smokefree Air Act now.
Gerry Schwab
American Heart Association
Board member
U.S. Highway 1
North Brunswick
Attacks on Murtha egregious, defamatory
To the editor:
Recently, U.S. Rep. John Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat, sharply criticized the war in Iraq, stating that our troops have nothing more to accomplish in Iraq and demanding that American troops be brought home within six months.
For his courage and honesty, Republicans assailed Rep. Murtha’s character. Vice President Dick Cheney even accused Rep. Murtha of losing his "backbone."
The vice president attacks on Rep. Murtha are particularly egregious. Rep. Murtha is a former Marine who served in Vietnam, while Mr. Cheney received five Vietnam-era draft deferments due to "other priorities."
Mr. Cheney has absolutely no business questioning Rep. Murtha’s "backbone." He and the Republicans enjoy defaming anyone who questions their policies, but they seem to have a hard time looking in the mirror and admitting their own mistakes.
Eddie Konczal
First Avenue
Monroe
