Out of proportion

I agree with Leonard Hickman with regards to the three-story building being built on 13th Street. There are five two-floor apartments above the retail space and if you figure two cars per apartment that means 10 cars. There is no way near that much off-street parking.

Also there are 19 individual air conditioners on the exterior of the building. I can only guess what that will sound like on a hot day in August.

Garry Koop
Hood River

Every 15 minutes

Kudos to the OSSOM club at Hood River Valley High School for presenting an assembly to the juniors and seniors about the consequences of drinking, doing drugs and driving.

The Hood River News articles (May 2) did a great job reporting some of the legal outcomes of driving while impaired that were presented, and included personal messages of community members. Sadly missing, however, were two key messages.

The OSSOM assembly was also intended to be a memorial for students who were supposedly killed by a drunk or impaired driver. What the public may not know is that parents agreed to participate in having a death notice given to them by an officer and a TIP volunteer. Parents are then asked to speak about their experienced during the assembly.

Fortunately, only a few people have the slightest idea of how the announcement of a child’s death affects the parents and their immediate family. Sharing this with students (even if it didn’t really happen) is an extremely personal and emotional experience that parents hope will leave a lasting impression upon the students.

It is easy to have an educator say they participated in past assemblies but students today need to hear it from others outside of the educational field. In this manner the article fell short.

The article also neglected to share how an impaired person affected the lives of some of the speakers. All of these personal stories help to bring home the consequences of driving while impaired.

My hope is that the HRVHS OSSOM club continues the “Every 15 Minutes” portrayal and assembly. I hope that it will help to continue saving the lives of our young people.

Denise Long
Hood River

Time to bike

My name is Dylan Samuel Chambers and I am a third-grader at Westside Elementary.

For the past one-and-a-half years, I have been biking to school, with my Dad or Mom, most every day. I am writing to encourage other students and parents to walk or bike to school/work.

The reason I like to bike is it helps saves the planet and makes you healthy! At Westside, we are doing a month-long challenge to see how often students bike or walk to school.

Every day that you walk or bike, you can enter a raffle for a new bike donated by Mountain View Cycles, and other cool prizes.

Don’t forget that May 11-15 is also Walk or Bike to Work Week. Thanks to all the drivers that share the road with us.

Dylan Chambers
Hood River

Parsons for Port

Let’s vote for Scott Parsons/Port Commissioner! Scott is running for Port Commissioner 3 (his opponent is the incumbent Kathy Watson).

We think Scott will be a valuable asset to this position! He wants to represent the people’s viewpoint in Port business. He has an incredible knack for listening, and truly cares about the Gorge. He will definitely bring some focus and new energy to this position.

Scott is a family man and has an incredible wife and two girls who have lived in Hood River since May 1996.

Scott has a strong desire to serve his community and we urge you to vote for him on the May ballot for our Port Commissioner.

Chris and Melanie Nickelsen
Hood River

 

Don’t limit letters

Regarding letters to the editor, I don’t believe there should be any limits on context or any limits on an individual’s annual published letters as suggested by one letter on April 29.

Most of us enjoy having freedom of speech, and freedom of the press, and all the other freedoms in our democracy.

Even if a reader does not agree with the opinions someone else wrote, it may cause him to think about the issues the other person brought up in their contribution to the op-ed page.

For this and many reasons, all contributions are valued.

We need to respect each other’s opinions for the fact that they make us think, improve our perspective; creating a better society.

Write down and send in your points of view, then we can think about what you have to say. We need a strong community — we’re all in this together.

Thank you.

Florence E. Akiyama
Hood River

Keep it simple

Anna Marie Reeves Jarvis was born in Virginia in 1832. She was a feminist — and during the Civil War (1861-65), she organized women to accommodate the wounded of both sides.

She became active in the promotion of Mother’s Day after the war. She died in 1905; however, daughter Anna Jarvis pursued the crusade. She finally succeeded in 1914 when President Wilson officially designated the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day.

Here’s what daughter Anna Jarvis said about it:

“I wanted [Mother’s Day] to be a day of sentiment, not profit. A printed card means nothing except that you are too lazy to write to the woman who has done more for you than anyone in the world.

“And candy! You take a box to Mother — and then eat most of it yourself. A pretty sentiment. What will you do to route charlatans, bandits, pirates, racketeers, kidnappers and other termites that would undermine with their greed one of the finest, noblest and truest movements and celebrations?”

Writer Will Chen provides pearls of wisdom here: “The next time you are tempted to cheapen Mother’s Day with an expensive, guilt-assuaging gift, consider doing something more thoughtful instead, like making your own Mother’s Day card or cooking her a special meal.”

That’s what both Annas really meant.

How simple gratitude can be!

Mary Jane Heppe
Hood River

Cuts hit students

As colleges across the state of Oregon face budget cuts in many areas, it is important to take a few moments to realize who is really being affected.

Students are the future of a prosperous state, but their issues are often forgotten.

Because of the rough economic climate, citizens are flocking to institutions of higher education to attain a degree. They believe that furthering their education will help raise them out of their current financial situations, and create a superior workforce that Oregon so desperately needs.

Eastern Oregon University is one of those places which allow many first-generation and/or low-income students to achieve their educational ambitions which would otherwise go unfulfilled. Unemployment rates are drastically rising, but so are enrollment rates into universities and community colleges.

This influx shows the demand for a reinvestment in higher education, which, excluding the 2007 legislative session has been lacking. This should tell representatives that they need to place a high priority on funding higher education, particularly the Oregon University System which funds rural, regional schools like EOU.

With advocacy from the collective state, we can help students create a solid foundation for a stable and productive career serving Oregon.

Mario Olivares
Student Government Senator and Eastern Oregon University student

McBride for Port

I am voting in Rich McBride for Port, here’s why: He knows the challenges of running a business as a former small-business owner. His talents include experience as a chef, carpenter, mechanic, marketer, actor and teacher. Experience that will give him empathy and understanding as a port commissioner dealing with business issues.

Rich is a committed environmentalist. His decision to craft his own campaign signs and avoid the plastic ones is a small example.

Rich has vision and wants to engage the community in a discussion about our future. He also had the vision and good fortune to marry one of the most level-headed gals in the county, Kate (Huseby) McBride.

Please vote McBride for Port: the right choice.

Peter Cornelison
Hood River

Two-way street

While I usually find very little that I agree with Mr. Cliff Mansfield on, his recent letter in regards to cyclists is one that I do … sort of.

I’m sure most of us in Hood River can share a story or two about bicycles and near-misses due to cyclists not following the law, or common sense. One of mine is of an adult leading four or five children on bikes through a stop sign with me coming at them, at 5 miles under the speed limit, thank goodness.

When I stopped and commented on the poor lesson he was setting for the children in his charge, his response was “Well, you were going pretty fast”!

As with any group of people, most cyclists I know and have contact with respect the law and use common sense when riding. As usual, it is a small minority that tends to give the rest a black eye; you probably know who you are: the two guys riding side-by-side taking up the entire travel lane on May Street; the gal who was flying down State Street clearly exceeding the speed limit, then blowing through the stop sign at Front and State — luckily there wasn’t an unseen motorist to cream you.

These are the types of cyclists who demand their right to “share the road” but seem to ignore the responsibility for their own safety. I don’t mind sharing the road with cyclists, but mutual respect for the law, and being conscious of each other’s safety, should be a two-way street.

By the way, I don’t own a bicycle. My bike has a throttle!

Gary Lindemyer
Hood River  

Speak up

Some people in Congress say that this country cannot afford clean energy, affordable health care or a quality education for our children. But I believe that what we can afford is a matter of priorities.

All of us are taxpayers and should have a say in how our tax money is spent. Where do we want or need to spend our money? If a great number of ordinary people speak up, Congress will listen. We have the mail, the telephone and the Internet.

Use any method that you can to let your voice be heard. Write, telephone, and e-mail members of Congress and the president. Speak out for clean energy, affordable health care for all, and a quality education for our young people.

Don’t delay! Do it now while these issues are still on the table.

Anne Vance
Hood River

Keep CAT

I want to express strong agreement with correspondent Sue Hartford (April 25 letters) on the pleasure of riding our CAT buses.

Even though I had the privilege of working with concerned Mid-Gorge residents and CAT’s director in obtaining our scheduled bus service to Portland and The Dalles, I had not ridden the bus to Portland until a month ago — and the trip was indeed wonderful, a joy with great and friendly bus drivers and four extremely convenient stops in the city.

I hope to continue working further with other CAT board members (including incumbent and write-in candidate Nancy Moller) with our superb director and staff, and with concerned county residents on keeping and expanding CAT’s bus service to everyone in this county, following this month’s elections.

Paula Friedman
Parkdale

Legal or not?

I would like to know since when has it been legal to pass someone on the right side? Twice in the last month I have had this happen: While waiting for the car ahead of me to make a left-hand turn, the car behind us has passed on the right side.

Legal or not?

Jean Sellers
Dee

ANOTHER VOICE

By JONATHAN GRACA
and SARAH HACKNEY

The recent flurry of letters to the editor around bicycling are a timely segue into Gorge Grown Food Network and Hood River Valley Residents Committee’s effort to organize Hood River Bike & Walk to Work Week, May 11-15.

The idea of National Bike to Work Week is to encourage individuals to use bicycles or walking as an alternative means of transportation. Adults aren’t the only ones taking on a challenge. Students at Westside Elementary are also being challenged to ride to their work in the month of May.

“Why,” you might ask, “should I ride my bike or walk when I’ve got a perfectly good and safe car out in the driveway?”

A few reasons:

$$$: Parking, gas and maintenance cost money — and mileage is at its worst when you’re making short stop-and-go trips in town. And imagine savings to taxpayers if, say, 30 people who normally drive their car to work in Hood River start walking or biking: Paving a parking spot on city-owned land costs about $8,000; building a new parking structure would cost the City of Hood River $15,000-$30,000 per parking spot. Thirty fewer parking spots translates to more than $200,000 in savings for the city.

New in 2009 is the Bicycle Commuter Tax Credit. If you ride your bike a “substantial portion” of your commute to work, talk with your employer about receiving the tax credit of $20 per month from the federal government.

Environment: According to 2000 data by the Emission Database for Global Atmospheric Research, 27 percent of greenhouse gas emissions come from transportation. Short trips are up to three times more polluting per mile than long trips.

Health: Even in Oregon, land of the sporty, more than one quarter of citizens are considered obese. Riding and walking are ideal, low-impact means to lose weight and improve your energy, fitness and overall health.

Events for HR Bike & Walk to Work Week

Commuter Challenge: Citizens in Hood River or those who commute to Hood River are challenged to complete at least four “errands” (going to work, picking up groceries, etc.) via bicycle or walking from May 11-15. Participants are eligible for a free $10 gift certificate for the Gorge Grown Farmers Market this summer, or free SWAG. Pick up at Café for Commuters.

Café for Commuters: A final celebration of the week will be held outside at Second and State streets in Hood River from 7:30-9 a.m. Friday, May 15 (National Bike & Walk to Work Day). Stop by en route to work for free coffee and pastries from 10 Speed Coffee. Successful commuter challengees can also pick up their prizes.

Thanks to our sponsors: the City of Hood River, Providence Hood River Memorial Hospital, Dakine. For more information: www.hrvrc.org.

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Jonathan Graca is executive director of the Hood River Valley Residents Committee.

Sarah Hackney is executive director of Gorge Grown Food Network.