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Show 2 Opinion and Commentary Wednesday, November 26, 2003 end feasted. Thw was the first Thanksgiving feast. The Indians did bring some deer and food of their own, which helped. They also returned several times for other feasts that fall. That left their stores for the winter rather slim again. In return for the kindness of the Indians they also shared something with them that was worth more than life. They shared their faith in their Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It is important to remember two things about those PUBLIC FORUM -- LETTERS TO THE EDITOR What is your opinion? The Express welcomes letters from its readers concerning any subject pertinent to the Uintah Basin. There are no restrictions as to contents, if not libelous or vindictive and of reasonable length (two typewritten double spaced pages). Letters must be submitted exclusively to the Express and bear the writers full name, signature, phone number and address. Letters for the sole pur pose of expressing thanks to individuals or groups will not be printed in the forum. Letters may be mailed, faxed at at editorvernal.com. or through The name or names of those submitting letters must appear on all published letters. All letters are subject to condensation. Letters express the opinion of the writer and are not necessarily the opinion of the Express Editor. The real story of the Plymouth celebration Dear Editor, As with many traditional holiday observances, there is a lot of folklore and misinformation surrounding their background. So it is with the first Thanksgiving celebration at Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts. Most people dont really know who the Pilgrims were, much less why they fled first to Holland from England and then came to America to establish a colony here. The first Pilgrims were separatists from the Church of England who were then persecuted for their adherence to the Bible alone rather than the traditions and doctrines of the Church. They knew their Bibles very well and believed in a form of congregational church government under Christ rather than a centralized form under the authority of a Church leadership. They believed there exists only one true and living God; that all men are bom with a sin nature and justly condemned by a Holy God unless they are saved before they die; and that salvation and eternal life are received by grace alone through a personal faith in Christ and His sacrifice apart from any good works man can do. By 1606, many people in England with similar beliefs began gathering into separate free churches and meeting secrctly. This lcd3o oyutlpse hundred minister leaving the Anglican Church. Ihey did this in fear of of all such peot King James who had ordered ple. Finally, most of them moved to Holland, where they believed there was freedom of religion. There were disadvantages there, too. The language was different, customs strange, jobs scarce and wage low. They found religious freedom, but little else. As the years passed an added problem was that many of their children were being lured away from the faith by the worldly lifestyle of the young people of Holland. After twelve years of exile and discouragement, they decided to relocate in the New World. The problem with that however, was lack of money for such a move', They were able to secure some investors from London contract to to finance them and signed a seven-yea- r send back anything that could be sold for a profit. However, only 41 members of the Holland congregation were willing and able to sail on the Mayflower in 1620. The rest of the 61 passengers were recruited by the London investors and did not hold the same convictions or beliefs. They also threatened to go their own way w hen they got ashore. To remedy this situation, the leaders of the Pilgrims drew up a Charter which we now call the Mayflower Compact for ALL settlers to sign, to plant a colony for the advancement of the Christian faith, binding all signers together into a civil body for their order and preservation and to establish just and equal laws. As they went ashore in November of 1620, the ground was frozen and unyielding. Half the settlement died during the first months of 1621 from exposure, disease and bad diet. With Spring came new hope and help from some of the friendly Indians of the area who taught them how to find and catch fish, make com grow and where to hunt. But even then, the first harvest was small and hardly adequate to get them through another winter. Winslow writes our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men out fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. ...At which time, .. .many of the Indians coming amongst u$... with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained 7. 0892-109- Put ted svsry Wednesday tor 24 per year i shopping are and t36 per year out of shopping area within stats and $39 per year out Of stall witkn USA by (he Vernal Express Publishing Company. 54 North Vernal Avenue, Vernal, Utah 84078 Periodicals postage pax at Vernal, UMi 4078 L POSTMASTER. Send address changes to VERNAL EXPRESS, PO Box 1000, Vernal Utah 64078 Stsvsn R wr Edrtof and PubMtef ...Quasi Wrtttr .Fsotur Wrttsr FMbjr Wrttar Pubfec Nottoes Maursen Spsncsr bWxt Oaks Courtney Mrttscsm Jsoqu Hobt Tam Black.. Tasted Robinson - .....ArVwBwng .Cotulatton Cteurtwd Ad ....Ade rtmg and Layout Phons. Wsbsrtr FAX vsma( com mal -- ditor0vsmsl com NEW DEADLINES' Display Advertising .... Otsaated Adverting PubSc Nonce . ..Monday 12 noon Monday 2 pm. Uonday 2 pM. Monday 2 pm. J (unWCCMB?) Post offices prepare for busy holiday T Vifymts Hamrtgton LAST tslGHT I original Pilgrims. First,they were accustomed to thanking God daily for everything, not just once a year. And second, the motivation for their coming to the New World was not economic, but spiritual. They desired to worship and serve God in truth without fear of persecution. Considering these facts, it seems that we celebrate the wrong things at Thanksgiving. We should all be thankful today for the great God of grace and mercy who sustained the Pilgrims in spite of the meager harvest. It is the unsinkable faith in God and His Word the Bible of these determined Christians that they brought to the shores of this great land for which we should be thankful. For pioneers like these, we should give thanks every month of the year. PASTOR MIKE BARDON ' Grace Baptist Church 789-869- 0 (ISSN TREAKOT" FROZE TO DEAtTO We expect a very busy holiday mail season, said Salt Lake City Postmaster Ralph Hamilton. About 20 billion cards, letters and packages will be mailed nationwide between Nov. 28 and Dec. 31. We encourage everyone to mail early to ensure those greetings reach loved ones in time. To move large volumes of mail nationwide, the U.S. Postal Service has added more transportation and equipment, and where needed, more temporary holiday help. Postmaster Hamilton offered the following tips to make preparing and mailing holiday cards and packages easier Mail early. You save on postage costs, save on convenience, and help get your holiday mail there on time, avoiding possible bad winter storms which can delay delivery. Holiday mail deadline for delivery by Christmas most overseas military location is Dec. 11, using First-Claand Priority Mail, and Dec. 13 to most international locations, using air mail. Express Mail is avail-4bl- e to many, locations after these dates. Maiil holiday cards, letters and packages to U.S. addresses by Saturday, Dec. 20, using First-ClaMail and Priority Mail. If using Parcel Post, destination should be mail by Dec. 13. Mail to these dates, you can Dec. After 22. sent by Monday, still use Express Mail for packages to many destinations.. (1.800-275-877to get the Call holiday customer service hours of your local post offices, rates, ZIP Codes,. Check out the Postal Service' web sit at www.usps.come for postage calculations, post office location, ZIP Code lookup, plus stamps and unique gifts. Include the correct printed address on all cards, letters and packages including name, street, apartment number, city, state, ZIP Code, Print return address in the upper left comer. For holiday cards and letters, the post office offers several colorful 37 cent holiday stamps including holiday music makers, Madonna & Child, Snowmen, Eid, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. Beside post offices, you can order holiday stamps and other stamps by phone at and from the USPS web site at www.usps.com. You can also order stamps by mail. Pick up a Stamps by Mail order form at your Post Office or from your letter carriers. When preparing your package for mailing, use a strong, sturdy box with no writing on the outside. Express Mail and Priority Mail boxes, envelopes and tubes are available for free at your post office. Package the contents of your parcel tightly and securely; using newspaper, bubble wrap or other cushioning available at your post office. Remove batteries from toys and items. Package containcookies, fruitcake and food items in leak-proers or secure protective wrapping. Write die destination address on the piece of paper and place it inside the package. Seal your package with strong, reinforced packing tape. Do not use paper or string on the outside of package. They can get tangled in mail processing equipment, For packages, print the complete name and address, including ZIP Code, in large print on one tide of the package only. Make sure you print your return name and address in the upper left comer. Package senders are encouraged to purchase package Deliver Confirmation service and insurance. The best time for taking our packages directly to the or post office for mailing is ss , ! out-of-ta- te ss te 7) of mid-momi- n. Obtain packaging products, including tape, envelopes, padded bags, boxes, mailing tubes and cushioning material from your post office. Express Mail and Priority Mail boxes, envelopes and tubes are free. Print postage-pai- d ' shipping label from the comfort of your home or business using Postal Service e p package service. There is no the extra charge for service, and you receive free delivp i ery confirmation with your package. on sire the variable web at postal www.lusps.comclkknship. The Postal Service expects the busiest mailing day of the year to be Monday, Dec. 15. The biggest deliver day is expected to be Wednesday, Dec. 17. Click-N-Shi- on-lin- Click-N-Shi- Gins Gems Lefts fix 'a By Virginia Harrington Express Writer It is unfortunate, but true, that many people in the local communities are still confused about the purpose of the Childrens Justice Center(CJC). What the CJC is not: it is not a place to bring troubled children to justice. It is not a court and it is not a detention center. What the CJC is: it is a protected place that helps obtain justice for abused children. Children are naturally tenrified of the people that abuse them, Even when the abuser is a parent whom the child loves, and from whom the child desperately wants love and approval, the fear is very real and can easily overwhelm a young child. Abusers are often set free because their tiny victims are too afraid to testify against them. Thats where the CJC comes in. Imagine being six years old and sitting on a witness stand in a courtroom. You feel swallowed by the mmiscomiceipftiioin) , huge chair from which your little feet dangle at least two feet off the floor. A stranger in a black robe towers over you from behind a giant desk. Another stranger asks ybu questions that you are embarrassed to answer. Everywhere you look there are faces that you dont know and things you dont understand. Worst of all, the person who did terrible, painful things to you is staring at you. You remember that person warning you never to tell anyone about the things that were done to you. You remember that person making threats to harm your siblings or someone else you love if you ever tell. Your mouth is dry and you are shaking so hard inside you feel like you cant breathe. Now switch to the CJC. You are still six years old and you are brought into a house with lots of books and toys. All the furniture is soft and there is a warm carpet on the floor. The kitchen smells good. Kind people talk to you very gently, very softly. They read to you and let you play with the toys. A nice lady fixes all the places on your body that hurt and makes you feel better. The house has a room with a ter- raced platform. The people let you climb to the top, holding one of the toys or maybe a soft, fluffy blanket. A nice man sits at the bottom of the platform so you can feel bigger, stronger, safer. The person who hurt you isnt there. That person cant see you or hear you. That person cant know if you tell the nice man what happened to you. When you feel comfortable, safe, protected,, you finally tell whats been done to you. Your story is recorded on video tape. The tape goes to the courtroom. You never have to sit in that big chair. Thats what the Childrens Justice Center is. It is one of the most compassionately inspired agencies to ever exist. The next time someone asks for a donation for the CJC, remember what it is and who it helps. It helps societys tiniest Creating a strategy is key component of financial success Submitted by Delmer Hyde When planning a vacation, you try to make sure that all the necessary arrangements have been made and the itinerary is set long before you leave for your dream destination. To help ensure that you thoroughly enjoy your hard earned vacation, youve probably worked with a travel professional or service to design a trip that is geared toward your specific tastes and travel desires. Once youve taken off and your trip has begun, you dont want to worry about anything except enjoying yourself and the beautiful surroundings. Very often, its the planning and preparation that determines the success or failure of a great vacation. In many ways, devising a strategy for a secure financial future is similar to planning for a great vacation. Having a prudent, approach will be a key contributor to the success of the journey. However, the choices for a longterm financial strategy are far more complex and consequential than those faced when planning a dream vacation. To construct a successful strategy, most likely youll need the assistance of a qualified financial professional someone who has the knowledge and experience to help guide key decisions youll be making as you map out your financial future. . Most strategy development processes share certain key components or phases which, when joined together, help create an overall financial strategy. First, there is the initiation or discovery stage. Here the focus is on creating a list of primary financial concerns and priori ut ties. The financial professionals role at this stage will be to ask the right questions and to keep the goals. process focused on long-terSecond is the financial inventory m or profile phase. At this time, youll examine current assets, debts and income to help formulate a complete picture of your current financial situation. During this process, youll also need to determine future investment objectives and goals and try to anticipate future events and contingencies so they can be incorporated into your overall financial blueprint. Third, everything you learned in steps one and two are combined to create a comprehensive strategy. It is at this point in the process that the guidance of a financial professional is most important. Their knowledge and aptitude can help you understand and incorporate the financial products which are most appropriate for your specific set of goals and objectives. The fourth phase in the process usually includes reviewing and confirming your choices. Youll analyze the entire program one last time to fine tune each of the key elements. This will help ensure that they all fit into your overall strategy. At this stage, youll also begin to implement the specific components of your strategy, for example, by purchasing a particular investment product or insurance coverage. Finally, and often most importantly, youll need to continuously monitor and review your progress to ensure that youre staying on financial track. Over the long-terand as your circumstances change, youll need to adjust and refine your strategy to reflect shifts in your objectives and needs. Like the gratifying feeling you get at the end of a vacation, a comprehensive financial strategy can help you achieve a more secure future. Delmer P. Hyde, ChFC, CLU and Claye R. Robb are Registered Representatives of AXA Advisors, llC (member NASD, S1PC) 1218 West Highway 40, Vernal, UT, 84078 and are insurance agents of AXA Network, LLC, an insurance brokerage affiliate, offering life insurance and annuities of The Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States (New York, NY), an affiliated insurance company, and the insurance products of over 100 unaffiliated companies. m well-plann- Deadline for board position nears Dec. 3, at 5 p.m. is the deadline for making application for the position on the Uintah School District Board of Education vacated by Dr. James F. Allen. To apply for the position, submit a letter, including qualification and the reasons that you would like to serve on the Board of Education. The appointment will be made at the Dec. 9, board meeting. I r- - POOR |