OCR Text |
Show (The Page A7 CLtmfg-3nftfpmfrf- Thursday, April 18, 2002 nt Treatment is the best interest for a minor Letters to the Editor New coach is a teacher first Dear Editor Having received several phone calls and hearing rumors, I felt I needed to reply and state my point of view concerning my new coachingteaching position at GCHS. My first and foremost concern is the students. I grew up in Moab and graduated from GCHS and my desire has always been to return to Moab and make a difference there. Some of the rumors allude to my receiving a large bonus or pay raise to come there. This simply is not true. In fact. I'm taking a $20,000 cut in pay in order to fulfill this dream of returning to Moab. Because I do have a family, I did have to take that into consideration and all I asked was that I was able to bring my 12 years of experi- ence in regards to the pay scale. Without my years of experience, it would have been a $28,000 pay cut and I couldn't afford to return to Moab. I feel my experience is an investment that the school district recognizes and I feel I am worth this show of support. Being able to transfer years of experience is not an unusual thing in several other states, including Cali fornia and Arizona. My coaching record speaks for itself and F m not coming to Moab to just make these young men winners on the gridiron, but to make them winners in the game of life. I am first and foremost a teacher, and academics are very important to me. five always stressed academics with the teams Tve coached and Im proud of the fact that my teams have brought home 16 state academic championships during the 12 years Ive been coaching. I have no desire to cause contention with the faculty of Grand County School District. I want to be a part of the school district and build a good relationship with my fellow teachers. Im a member of the National Education Association and I find it disheartening that Moabs Teachers Association is using my hiring as a negative issue rather than a positive one. Were all on the same team, to make Moab schools' the best they can be. Sincerely, Dennis Wells, GCHS Football Coach 2002 03 Resident recruits others to be 'keepers of the rim' Dear Editor, For many years now I have walked the Moab Rim route as one way to stay fit. I took a break from it during the week before Easter, but returned the Tuesday afterward. I was horrified at this years degree of destruction that I saw. Not only had jeep enthusiasts driven off the established route, but the increased use by downhill mountain bikers (also off the route) has seriously damaged this beautiful desert rock garden. Even the berms on two sides of the Moab Rim parking lot on Kane Creek had been damaged by motorized trail bikes and mountain bikes. These berms had been carefully terraced and planted with native species. In addition to this the dog debris has been on the increase at the base of the route, especially across from the trail register. The stench can be overwhelming especially as our temperatures rise. This years damage is the worst Ive seen in my ten years here and it left me feeling disheartened. While my own preferred modes of transportation are my feet and my mountain bike, I have respect for others choices. It has been of interest to me to observe experienced and talented jeep drivers handle this difficult route. They quietly work their way along leaving practically no sign of their passage. Thus, damage need not occur in the first place. However, this years damage was too bad for me to ignore. I marched myself over to the t BLM and obtained their permission to become a Keeper of the Rim. I also spoke with the private land owner who owns the land at the upper portion of this route. Both parties want support in keeping recreationists (and special-evespectators) on or beside the established route. I would like to invite other local residents to help me. Perhaps businesses who benefit from various events that occur here could provide some manpower to help. Local bike shops could help educate downhill enthusiasts to stay on open sandstone. It would be very helpful if local dog owners would pick up after their pooches; a majority of our visitors already do so from habit. By the way, as of this writing I bucket of dog have hauled out a I dont even own a dog. I've also poop-anbike and jeep worked to obliterate tracks, put rock barriers in key places, and beberms. gun to repair the parking-lo- t This is our home, folks. We are fortunate to be able to live and work here. A good number of us enjoy the Moab Rim on a regular basis. Already I have met two terrific local women who pick up trash when they can. Maybe with a little team spirit we can repair this spot (and others) in our backyard and keep them looking .. nice. Respectfully, Cathy Tuhy Moab nt five-gallo- n d off-rout- i fee. Times-Independe- applaud the high schools girls that did step up in support of their teachers. This district has many dedicated people who put kids first! Why not value them? Most staff members daily give at least an hour or more of unpaid service to their jobs. I consider that total unselfish service to our community. If an employee gives just one hour a day at $10 an hour for 180 days that is $1,800. Multiply that by total staff and you have an Impressive amount. So what's my point? Its time to value what you have. Respectfully, Mrs. Dolphin Moab Note: Since the board of superintendent didnt publicly acknowledge my retirement in the newspaper, I will. School teacher retires after 30 years of teaching. (Notice! I did not mention service.) hard-workin- guest editorial nt Tourism or Vehicular Vandalism? by Tom Johnson While weve spent the last two years debating the tradeoffs, benefits, costs, and impacts of Ctoudrock to the future of our community, another element of our future that dwarfs Ctoudrock seems to be unfolding with little or no community dialogue. Thankfully, Rob Kerchen, Emily Miller, and Damian Nash, broached this subject in recent editorials and Incite others to respond. The issue is unrestrained vehicular vandalism on our public tends. For better or worse, the present and foreseeable future backbone of the Moab economy is tourism. What we, as a community, need to do is to differentiate tourism from vandalism and take measured steps to protect oursehres, and our landscape, from the latter. Our tourism economy centere on people coming to ve and experience our world class landscape and scenery, stay In our rental beds, eat at our restaurant tables, and visit the shops downtown, letting currency fall out of their pockets and into ours. Vandals come here with the express intent of damaging our priceless landscape with their expensive toys. They drive their vehicles across untracked landscapes with reckless disregard, crushing and killing the vegetation, and leaving their debris tor others to either pick up or view. Vandals may or may not stay in our beds or eat at our tables, 1x4 either way they take more from us, economically and phystoaHy, than they bring our way. They deplete our commupublic tends, nity resources county services, and community totorence. In the tong am, - - vandals discourage tourists from visiting, g, g, The prime example of this form of vehicular vandalin vs. tourism occurs during Jeep Safari Week. Registered participants to Jeep Safari fin our motels arid restaurants with tourists seeking organized, respony sible adventures on existing roads. Above and beyond that come the vandals. Once our beds and tables are already full, what conceivable economic benefit comes to us from promoting, encouraging, and ultimately receiving an invasion of thousands of vandals and their toys? None that I can back-countr- see. Numerical counts of Jeep Safari week indicate that the sideshow far exceeds the official event, and is growing at a rate per year. Imagine next year at 50 worse than this year and the fcSowing year 50 worse toan that ft is not impos- - of 50 Lelters, goeet editorials continued on Page A& tims in our community, and most importantly it was what was in the best interest of the child! That was what the victims' mother and I were advocating for, the best interest of the abuser, and the safety of other children in our community. Parents are not psychologist or therapists and do not have the expertise to handle a child with so many deeply rooted problems. Unfortunately nobody at the Moabs DCFS office knew of my adopted sons past and therefore I and my deceased wife never received the training we needed to handle a child with so many problems. But the saddest thing is the adopted child never got the services he needed and thus steps to prevent future victims never occurred. DCFS never provided the appropriate services for this child. Sending that child home was dangerous. Using Vickies words again, Shame on you, Ms. Morgan and Judge Manly for putting our community at risk and possibly creating more child victims!" So Ms. Gordon is right, the community does need to report crimes like I have done. But as you can see from my experience, reporting crimes does not always prevent the community from danger when defense attorneys and judges do not take certain crimes seriously and place blame on the victimsparenta and thus, the best interest of the client is lost. Treatment is the best interest for a minor, not placing the community at risk and giving the abuser more opportunities to offend because he learned from the courts there are no consequences for his offenses. Paul L. Seibert Residence withheld upon request Community should view MARC childrens' art show Dear Editor, This last Saturday evening the MARC hosted an important show, a very large display of artwork by Grand County School Districts students, kindergarten through twelfth grade. 1 know there were many things going on that to see so few attend. The was but night, sorry good news for all parents and fans of children's artwork is that the show will be up for the rest of April at the Moab Arts and Recreation Center. If you missed the show, please stop by the MARC Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. It will be worth your while. I am sure that everyone will be as impressed as 1 am with the talent and creativity of our young people. Thank you, ILL. Weber and Recreation Center Director, Moab Arts Be aware of victimization of elderly and disabled adults e Retired teacher is disappointed by school board Dear Editor, I want to publicly express my displeasure and disappointment with our current School Board. When I came to this district many years ago, teachers were valued and supported by district officials. Unfortunately this is no longer the case. An example of this occurred when I retired after 30 years of teaching. I thought it would be announced in the news media. It never happened but I did read about the board trying to recruit someone to the district with an impressive winning record. Unless Im wrong, most teachers In Grand County feel unappreciated. Im betting a new morale survey would bear this out. Where was the board or superintendent when a certain gentleman wrote a negative letter to the editor regarding the use of videos in the classroom. Was there a show of support by the board? (Not to my knowledge.) I do Dear Moab Citizens, I am writing to express my appreciation for Cindy Gordons letter to The Times. I was very saddened and in shock after reading Vickies letter written to The Times a few weeks ago. She was writing a letter to support her boss. Happy Morgan, the defense attorney who represented Our adopted son. Happy is currently running for county attorney. Vickies letter was very accusatory towards roe and implied I was not a good parent and that I wanted to wash my hands of the situation instead of taking responsibility for my adopted son. I and my deceased wife only wanted to make a difference in the world. So in the goodness of our hearts, we adopted a teenager from Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS). This childs personality and behaviors were already in place before be was adopted by us. So Vickie, I or my deceased wife are not to blame for poor parenting, lack of supervision (as I quit my fulltime job to be there full time for my son), or any of those other parenting cliches that are used to blame a parent for a childs behavior. Using Vickies language, Shame on you for accusing me of not taking responsibility. I most certainly did. As soon as the minors spoke of their abuse by my adopted son, I followed the law as Ms. Gordon would, and called DCFS. I was at every court hearing, begging the courts and Happy Morgan, the defense attorney, and the prosecuting attorney to get this child in a residential mental health treatment program. This type of intensive treatment would have given the child the help he needed, a possible future without living behind bars, prevention of future vic Editor: Nationwide, individuals 85 years and older the fastest growing segment in society. Staare tistics suggest that by the year 2050 there will be 3.3 people over 60 for every child under four years of age in the United States. These statistics, combined, provide good insight as to why elderly people are prime targets for crime, specifically, abuse, neglect or exploitation. Seventy percent of the wealth in the, United States is held by those 50 years of age and older. Signs of exploitation may include: Power of attorney given when adult is unable to comprehend, changes in spending patterns, unusual withdrawals from accounts, ATMs etc., numerous unpaid bills, or undue influence by others. Telephone and mail fraud are also common methods used to exploit. Last year, Utah Adult Protective Services investigated approximately 2,300 allegations of abuse, neglect or exploitation of elder or disabled adults. The majority of the victims were females A total of 56 of the between the ages of were family membersrelatives, perpetrators while 26 were paid caregivers. There are a multitude of reasons why incidents of abuse, neglect or exploitation go unnoticed. Studies indicate that only one in ten cases of abuse of elderly or disabled adults are ever reported. One of the most common reasons is the victim's fear of retaliation or concern that reporting the crime(s) will be a loss of the caregiver which may affect their ability to live independently. They often choose to remain silent and continue to endure a situation that would otherwise not be tolerated. If you suspect an elderly or disabled person is being abused, please contact local law enforcement, or Adult Protective Services by calling Kelly Mike Green Adult Protective Services A tile for grandpa this he was well known at the City Pool. Tb honor him after he passed away the center put In a special dolphin tile in the lap lane he claimed as his. This tile will be a constant reminder to our family that people cared and he is remembered. Dear Editor, My grandmother believes people should be valued and so do 1. 1 want to share an example of how the Moab Swim Center staff have shown respect for my grandpa Dolphin. Grandpa loved to swim. If possible he probably would have lived tn the water. Because of 60-8- non-relate- Thank-yo- u 9. d Shawn and staff, you're the GREATEST. Sincerely, Laci Dolphin, 9 years old Moab fe" guest editorial Requiem for "The Woods" to by Jeanne Slmbeck recent local transplant Ive never considered myself a cat lover, mostly because they seem so resistant to training Not tidy to a fault by any means, I nevertheless shudder when I see one up on a kitchen counter checking out the food leavings. Still there is a grudging nod to my soul to that strain in the animal that resists control. Their disposition has allowed cats to pass from feral to domestic and back again through the pages of time since the days of the Pharaohs in Egypt and probably even before then. Growing up on the edge of Anchorage to a neighborhood of few children. I would often escape across the street to the woods' where I would make little mossy beds kx my do and construct elaborate edifices of twigs among the ferns and brambles. Parents cautioned from time to time of bums tivtog there, but that tkd net keep me from running away to my hideout with a wary eye out. Ce summer day I tost myself tor many hours since. A little over a year ago we found this lovely little town and once again I am living in an old orchard. We walk over to the wetlands from time to time or up the river road . Cold winter days It was easier to walk across the street through the woods, a section of the orchard that once covered this whole area. Overgrown and neglected. It was a home to many birds and wildlife. I have seen cats over there catching tadpoles in the brackish pond and arrived home after my Father that evening. The joy ot the day was met with stony silence, the repercussion of my prolonged absence. Time passed and the city razed the woods to build a fine new hospital, it took several years to build, so in the evenings I would pack my bicycle basket with sheet music and pedal over to the cement loading dock to sit there singing. The woods were gone, but I stilt found my solitude. When I W8S 12, we came outside to find a little farm where Dad felt my brother and I woukj grow up teaming more responsibility Our farm turned out to be a few acres of old apricot orchard north of Durango. Dad had a business to town and I had miles of Forest Service trails to explore throughout the valley on my tittle Morgan pony. Boots. The pinion- - and Nls hto red rock nooks that beckoned me to search them out. I toted books and snacks to my cave high on the cliff above the vaRey to lose myself oak-covere- as teenage meditation. It's been a busy 40 years weR. Two weeks ago heavy equipment leveled the trees. The hospital board that owns the land tells us there was a fire hazard and that vagrents were camping there. They are unpaid volunteers trying to run a hospital, not orchard managers. Tonight I am trying to gain some perspective. This much I know, i wiR continue to find and lose wfld places to my tife. I wH go a bit further to search out other woods now. And one day, who knows. I may even get a cat Written 412'02 for Ceitlin, hekved granddaughter on her 9th birthday. |