7/18/2012 - West Side Leader
     

To the editor:

On June 23, the Norton Fire Department had a training burn. If you were there, you saw the amazing things our firefighters do when confronted with a structure fire. If you were not there, you missed an amazing opportunity to see not only our fire department in action, but firefighters from neighboring departments as well.

I remember watching these firefighters, all with different jobs and responsibilities, go in and out of this smoking and ultimately blazing structure. When you see this up close and personal, it can give you a whole new appreciation for what these men and women do every day. I was standing near the house next door, and you could hardly stand even that far away because the heat, smoke and flames were so intense. I learned something that day that a house fire doubles every minute. Can you imagine if this were your home or business? If you knew there were people inside?

Then I started to think about the fire levy and how shortsighted our city has been not to support these individuals. I looked around and there was not one representative from the city, not one member of Council and, I thought, where is everybody? What a great opportunity to show support for our Fire Department.

So I got on the phone. I called Councilwoman [Charlotte] Whipkey [at large] and asked her very frankly, why was she absent? It seems to me, especially if someone doesn’t think they need to support this department or the work they do, that they should see exactly what they do, and this was her opportunity. I mean, if you are going to take a stand on an issue, you should be educated enough to form an educated opinion.

In any event, it was an interesting conversation because she told me, and I quote, “I am home catching up on my life.” Really? Aren’t we all? Didn’t she want to be elected because she cared about the city and the issues? Guess not.

Councilman [Don] Nicolard [Ward 2] did show up, and our city Administrator [Rick Ryland] did as well. I know a number of our council members were on vacation. It was nice to see some of our officials are interested.  

So here’s the question you should be asking yourself. If your house catches fire in the middle of the night, and, remember, a fire doubles every minute, or you need a paramedic in the middle of the night, is your “no” vote going to be worth what you have risked? Please consider passing this levy.

Kathy Cunningham, Norton

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