Opinion

There are times that I don't even know what to say. Today is one of them. For those that know me, you know that words are usually something I don't have trouble finding. As I drove through Benton County yesterday, I was shocked at the damage I saw. The further south I went the further my heart sank. The damage is devastating. Today I pulled into the gas station to see cars from Johnson and Linn County.

Dear Editor,I was very pleased to hear that Councilman Brian Parr expressed his concerns about the future of Vinton Veteran's Memorial Airport.  Brian truly understands the importance of a local airport for a community our size.  Most do not - or they haven't really thought about it. The Vinton Veterans Memorial Airport was founded in the mid-1960s by the City of Vinton.

I tend to trust, probably too much. I trust the elected officials to do the right thing, I trust the doctor to know what they are saying is best for me, I trust the mechanic, I trusted, well I'll stop there. This year there has been a push for everyone to vote by mail. Now if I were a conspiracy theorist, which I don't think I am, I just think sometimes believing everything I'm being told takes more faith then being an atheist.

Last week I had the unfortunate experience of walking out the door to see my car had been hit. An hour later, police report in hand, information exchanged I finally headed home. A day or so later I'm looking at my police report only to see that I was driving a Land Rover, yippee for me! It sounds like a decent car and I hear they are expensive, but I figured that perhaps I'd better put a call in and say, umm.

This was shared with Vinton Today in dedication to our Vinton-Shellburg Educators. Teachers, thanks for all that you do, for making the best of this new year. ---I believe in Iowa Educators!On behalf of the educators out there...this next quarter (and probably longer) starts a new chapter in public education. There is a huge learning curve that students, teachers, and district administrators will be navigating, yet again, together!As we embark on this thing called “eLearning or blended learning”, we are asking our Facebook friends to refrain from publicly scrutinizing their children’s teachers/schools/district for the way they are teaching, the lessons they’re assigning, or the decisions the districts are making.

Dear Editor,These are trying times for a lot of people.  There are families in our town wondering how they’re going to pay their rent/mortgage.  There are people wondering where their next meal is coming from.  Local businesses are wondering if they will ever reopen their doors. Even those that can make it through this week/month/year have no idea what is to come.

This 4th was not a celebration, clearly, but a recognition of the boundaries of our illusions of freedom and that our institutions have all but collapsed, long hollowed of all Spirit that ever indwelled them.This 4th was a bitter recognition that access to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, is subject to determination by agencies and institutions with no rightful authority over our lives.

Funding is still the single most important factor when supporting our children's education, but it is not the only issue. At a recent panel on challenges and opportunities in Iowa education hosted by the Ivy Schuster for Iowa Senate campaign, school administrators, educators, and a local parent informed the campaign and the audience that we should do more.

Take heart Patty,Just look at the venom of Linsey and Gould!  These leftist - may I say Maxist Socialist, want us on the other side to shut up.  They are the ones who wish to end the 1st and 2nd Amendments.  They rarely if ever discuss the issues raised, but demonize the messenger.  Shame on you!  Antifa is a mirror image of the Brown Shirt Nazis of the 1930's - Black Lives Matter has heads that are admittedly trained Marxist.

Dear Editor, It’s been a little over a year since my wife became a resident of VGH Nursing and Rehab. The recommendations were correct!As a result, our daughter moved from Hiawatha to Vinton so I could live with her and be near to my wife. I tell you this so you can understand how important the VGH Nursing and Rehab is to this area.It’s now been a year and I’ve had a chance to participate in many facets of living in Vinton; it’s been great ! ( business, local government, Benton Co.