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Show concerning any subject. Anything of a libelous nature or defamation of character will not be considered for publication. Please limit your letters to 300 vords or less. We reserve the right to edit for clarity or length. Letters must ce signed and include your full name, address and telephone number. Limited o one letter per person per month. thanks Be-labor- ed Dear Editor: We wanted to say thank you to the nurses and staff at the Kane County Hospital for the excellent care that they gave us when having our baby. A special thanks to the delivery room nurses: Becky, Marie, Lou and Sara. Last, but not least, Dr. Blackham, thank you so much! to Dispatchers A Tribute Dear Editor: Someone once asked me if I thought that answering tele- phones for a living was a profession. I said, I thought it was a calling. And so is dispatching. I have found in my law enforcement career that dispatchers are tha Mike, Meagan unsung heros of public safety. & Zack Lawson, Kanab They miss the excitement of Melancholy motorist Dear Editor: Im writing this to extend my appreciation to the person or persons responsible for the theft of my battery. Its so nice to take a drive in the country, leave your ehicle unattended, and have someone strand you in the middle sf nowhere. I sincerely hope that you needed the battery more than (. Im happy to help, however if theres anything else you require, the truck is parked in front of my lome, please help yourself. Sincerely, Tim Shanks Stranded Motorist Six generations Dear Editor: Being a frequent visitor to anab, I wasdelighted to read and iee a photo of Six Generations. Southern Utah News, March 25, 2001) Great, Fred and Virginia Bonnard, long-im- e residents ofKanab, have been dear friends of mine for over 50 years and I' have, watched this taring family grow and graciously mature into six generations. Many blessings and congratulations! great-grandparen- ts Dora Zinn Sugar Land, Texas Thank you Dear Editor: My family and I want to thank all of you in Kanab and Fredonia who were so supportive and caring with the passing of our beloved husband and father Murray Godbe. Special thanks lo to Dr. Vermeesch and the wonderful staff at Kane County Hospital, Hazel and Stacy and ;he staff at Country Living Elder Care, Mosdells, Kortney and ;rew, Dawna, Roddy and Gregg. Words can never express the depth of appreciation we feel for all of you. You have made our great loss easier to bear. riding in a speeding car with lights flashing and sirens wailing. They can only hear of the bright orange flames leaping from a burning building. They do not get to see the joy on the faces of worried parents as they see their child begin, breathing on his own, after he has been given CPR. Dispatchers sit in darkened rooms looking at computer screens and talking to voices from faces they never see. Its like reading a lot of books, but only half of them. Dispatchers connect the anxious conversations of terrified victims, angry informants, suicidal citizens and grouchy officers. They are the calming influence of all of them the. quiet, competent voices in the night that provide the pillars for the bridges of sanity and safety. They are expected t8 gather information from highly agitated people who canjt remember where they live, what their name is, or what they just saw1. And then, they are to calmly provide all that information to the officers, firefighters, or paramedics Vithout error the fifst time and every time. Dispatchers are expected to be able to do five things at once and do them well. While questioning a frantic caller, they must type the information into a computer, tip off another dispatcher (if they have one), put another caller on hold, and listen to an officer run a plate for a parking problem. To miss the plate numbers is to raise the officers ire; to miss the callers information may be to endanger the same officers life. But, the officer will never understand that. b. the interviewing skills of Dispatchers come in all shapes and sizes, all races, both sexes, Oprah Winfrey c. the patience of Job and all ages. They are blondes, d. the knowledge of Einstein brunettes, and redheads. They e. the humor of David are quiet and outgoing, single, or married, plain, beautiful or hand- Letterman f. the looks of Melanie Griffith some. No two are alike, yet they or Don Johnson are all the same. g. the energy of Charo They are people who were selected in a difficult hiring process h. the wisdom of Solomon i. the gentleness of Florence . to do an impossible job. They are FRIDAY 1 PM as different as snowflakes, but they have one thing in common. See LETTERS, Page 5 They care about people and they enjoy being the lifeline of society that steady voice in a storm the one who knows how to handle every emergency and does it with style and grace; and, uncompromised competence. Dispatchers play many roles: therapist, doctor, lawyer, teacher, CGfctW"COUNTR weatherman, guidance counselor, psychologist, priest, secreis published every The Southern Utah News (ISSN No. tary, supervisor, politician, and SON serves Kane N. . The 84741 Utah Main St., Kanab, Wednesday at 26 reporter. And few people must Please address communications and the Arizona Southern Utah News AAA Deadlines AAA MMh 0049-165- jump through the emotional hoops onthe trip through the joy of one callers birthday party, to the fear of another callers burglary in progress, to the anger of a neighbor blocked in their drive, and they are expected to walk downto their car with steady feet and no queasiness in their stomach because they are dispatchers. If they hold it in, they are too closed. If they talk about it, they are a whiner. Ifit bothers them, it adds more stress. If it doesnt, they question themselves, pondering why. Dispatchers are expected to Dispatchers have two constant companions, other dispatchers and stress.- They depend on one, and try to ignore the other. They are chastened by upset callers, taken for granted by the public, and criticized by the officers. The rewards they get are inexpensive and infrequent, except for the satisfaction they feel at the have: a. the compassion of Mother Kathy Godbe and family, end ofthe shift, haying done what Theresa Kanab they were expected to do. - 9) by Strip. County, Utah, mail to: 26 N. Main Street, Kanab, Utah 84741 , telephone or fax sunewskanab.net. available rates upon request. Second Class postage paid at Advertising Kanab, Utah 84741 . Newsstand price is 60c per copy. Yearly subscription rates to Kane County addresses and Fredonia and Moccasin, Arizona - $25; others ? $35 (out of U.S. - $50). The SUNews reserves the right to edit or reject any advertisement or submitted items. 435-644-290- 435-644-29- 26 0, e-m- ail Dennis and Dixie Brunner Publishers and Editor Michael Evangelista SaiesProduction Sharlotte Brewer Receptionist Carol Sullivan Rachel Tueller Reporters . Myrna Cox Valley News Postmaster. Send change of address cards to 26 N. Main Street Kanab, UT 84741 -- |