Dear Editor,
As a citizen of our fine city, I would like to voice my gratefulness for all the effort put into having a summer fair. My children have grown up looking forward to this event all spring, and talking about it throughout the fall. We have truly enjoyed all the work that goes into such an event.
On the flip side; however, there are certain difficulties we must tolerate as a city, for this event to take place…
• certain roads become one-way only
• side streets are cluttered with excess parking
• pedestrian traffic doesn’t pay attention when crossing streets these, among others, cause us all to make minor adjustments to our routines and habits, but they are worth it when we see the smiling faces of our family and friends.
The issue I am having is not with the fact that my street is crowded from morning to night. It’s with the fact that people visiting the fair are not considerate when parking in front of my home. Common courtesy would dictate that a parallel parked vehicle leave enough room for cars to navigate out of their own driveways. When a car is protruding 6 inches on either side of a single-car-width driveway, it leaves very little room for the owner’s vehicle to get through. Forbid there be an emergency! To top it off, the owners of the vehicles parked along my street seem to think that getting into their cars to head home is the perfect time to dump all their trash onto the curb. “Let’s make sure we don’t take any of our wrappers, cones, cups, napkins, etc. home, kids! Just throw it all out here!” Now, I am not the ‘greenest’ person around, but I do believe in personal responsibility. It is frustrating to wake up on a beautiful morning, walk outside, and see your entire side of the street littered with trash. I am proud of my home. I am proud of our city. I have lived in other areas, and it is hard to find neighborhoods as pretty and cared for as mine. I’d like to keep it that way!
Thank you,
Tracy Willer
Merrill
Dear Editor and Readers:
The main criticism I keep hearing about Senator Jim Holperin from his opponents is that he left the state to avoid voting on the budget repair bill, consequently bringing accusations by some of “dereliction of duty.”
In reality Senator Holperin, and for that matter, all of the Wisconsin 14 were working harder than if they had stayed in Wisconsin. The voters of this state really had very little insight as to the long reaching effects of this budget repair bill at the time the vote was to be taken. Had these courageous 14 individuals simply stayed and voted, this unjust overreach of power would have gone unnoticed to a vast majority of voters. These 14 Senators were doing exactly what they felt they needed to do to represent the people that sent them to Madison. Anyone who thinks these 14 went on a lavish joy ride is sadly mistaken. Leaving Wisconsin was probably among the most difficult decisions they have ever had to make, yet they felt they had no choice. They aren’t alone either, as this tactic has been used dating back to Dec. 5, 1840 when Abraham Lincoln jumped out of a second story window in Springfield, IL in an attempt to deny a quorum. Lincoln at the time was a State Representative.
In the past months, it has been very difficult to watch the continuous and blatant overreach of power by the republican dominated legislature, and governor. These people obviously don’t get that they are supposed to be there to represent the constituents of their districts, not ram rod through one pro corporate law after another, and at the same time administer one attack on middle class workers after another. This is why we must stop the overreach of power, we must stop the steamrolling, and we must bring a check and balance back to Madison.
Senator Holperin has and will continue to work for the hard working people he represents. I have contacted him several times and he always responds in a timely and appropriate manner. To assert that Senator Holperin dodged his duties in Madison is nothing more than a fabricated lie to get votes, don’t be deceived by it. Vote to keep Senator Holperin in District 12. Anyone willing to go the the lengths Senator Holperin has gone to for the working people of this district certainly has my vote!
Brian Hafeman
Tomahawk
Love Your Merrill Roundabout!
The roundabout is the best thing that has ever happened to Merrill traffic!
But let’s remember its function: TO KEEP TRAFFIC MOVING SAFELY! When you approach the roundabout, there are YIELD signs, NOT STOP SIGNS! According to the Wisconsin DOT web site, approach with caution, yield to the driver coming from the left, and proceed with caution. But please don’t come to the roundabout to stop… be alert and get through it. Merrill is on the move. Let’s remember to keep moving in our beautiful and efficient Merrill roundabout! For the proper method of using the a roundabout, go to www.dot.wisconsin.gov/safety/motorist/roaddesign/roundabout-transcript.
Sincerely,
Polly King
Merrill
Backpack Project Needs You:
He hugged his backpack, looked up at us with a smile and said, “Now I’m ready to start school!” The little boy had just picked up his backpack full of school supplies and could hardly contain his excitement. We are inviting you to help put that same excited smile on another young person this year.
Merrill Forward Together Healthy Community Initiative, the Optimists, the Lincoln County Family Resource Center, the Lincoln County Extension Office, and the 4-H Ambassadors are collaborating to coordinate a community-wide collection of backpacks and school supplies that will be given to children in grades K-5 in August. To qualify, the children must be eligible for free lunch according to federal guidelines. The struggling economy has hit our community hard, and your help is more important than ever before. The families served by the Backpack Project are having a hard time simply making ends meet. Without this help, many of these children will start the school year without the basic supplies they need.
We invite you to help in any way that you can. One way to help would be to purchase supplies and drop them in the boxes available at Wal- Mart or River Valley Bank. We are asking that people avoid purchasing supplies not on the list, so that all backpacks contain the same or very similar items.
Most needed items include: primary color wide ruled notebooks and folders, highlighters, glue sticks, boxes of 24 crayons, boxes of 12 colored pencils, boxes of 8 washable markers, school glue bottles, small erasers that fit on pencils, blue and red pens, pencil cases, and blunt and pointed scissors. NOT needed at this time are black pens and No. 2 pencils. Any backpacks appropriate for children in grades K-5 are also needed.
We have 500 backpacks to fill in a short amount of time, so tax-deductible financial contributions are needed to purchase supplies not donated. Checks made payable to MFTHCI – Backpacks can be mailed to P.O. Box 793, Merrill, WI 54452.
I hope we can count on you to be part of this opportunity to reach out to children and families in our community who need our help.
Backpacks will be filled on Aug. 19, so all donations should be received by Aug. 12.
Sincerely,
Linda Becker
MFTHCI Treasurer
Optimist Club
Member