Letters to the Editor
'Chain of love' perpetuated after fire

On July 10 our Greencastle home was among four destroyed by fire. Both during that awful night and in the weeks since, the community's response has been heartwarming.

But if I start naming names I'll no doubt surpass this newspaper's word limit on letters and still leave someone out.

There were the firefighters from Pennsylvania and Maryland who turned out at midnight on the hottest night of the year to battle one of the toughest blazes the area had seen.

And proving once again the old saying that a stranger is only a friend you haven't met, so many throughout the region - including many area businesses, churches and civic organizations - joined with old friends, relatives, neighbors . . . and strangers, to help in every possible way - housing, food, clothing, financial aid, labor help and whatever they could do.

All of this human kindness helped ease the mixed emotions of the past several weeks, in which I might have sometimes seemed like one person one day...and a different one 5 minutes later.

I've always believed that self-reliance and helping others are among life's hallmarks...so I'm not very comfortable being on the receiving end.

Yet I must say that my family and I appreciate from the bottom of our hearts everything everyone's done for us during this trying time.

A few years back the idea of "pay it forward" was resurrected in the public consciousness with both a Kevin Spacey movie of that name and a Clay Walker country song entitled "The Chain of Love."

My wife and I intend to stay in the community and continue to "pay it forward," never breaking that "chain of love" that so many have so graciously perpetuated.

Paul Politis Greencastle

These young folks are our future

On a recent Saturday morning, we had the privilege to participate in the graduation of the first class of Junior Fire Fighters from the Franklin County Public Safety Training Center. The six young women and 24 young men, all between 14 and 17 years of age, had given up a week of their summer vacation to enter a rigorous training program of both classwork and practical experience to help them become First Responders when they become 18.

The audience was filled with proud parents, grandparents, friends, and fellow fire fighters from many of the Franklin County fire companies. Senator Punt and Representative Kauffman attended in person and every other state official and Representative Shuster had a representative there or sent a special congratulations. The atmosphere was one of celebration as the speakers pointed out the benefits to our society that these young people were offering by becoming proficient in life saving skills and leadership abilities. Crawford Wiesting, currently a resident of Minnesota but a longtime fire fighter in Franklin County, had been with them earlier in the week assisting with the training and encouraging their efforts. Ken North, Training Coordinator for the Franklin County Fire Chiefs Association, also gave up a week of his personal vacation to lead the first Junior Fire Fighters class to be held in our county in almost thirty years.

All these attendees provided the type of positive reinforcement that these hard-working young adults deserved. In a few years these young folks will be the ones who save our homes, families, businesses, and prized possessions even on a hot Saturday in August, or Christmas Eve, or on their birthdays, or any other time that duty calls. These young folks are our future - for some of us, they may be the emergency responders who save our future. We thank them for their community service and wish them a safe and successful vocation as they enter the world of Emergency Services.

G. Warren Elliott Cheryl S. Plummer

Franklin County

Commissioners

A great Old Home Week

This was one of the best Old Home Weeks ever. I wish to thank all the committees, cantata, pageant, fireworks and thanks to the family who paid for the fireworks.

It was great to have Richard Besecker there at the cantata; he taught many of the students; also for Nikki Kauffman for doing a great job. The cantata was about this sweet land of liberty. We praised our country, our God and Armed Forces.

God gave us this land, but man has not taken care of it. We give aid to other countries and don't take care of our poor and homeless.

Life is like a traveler going from place to place, but God can take us off that road, with sickness, accidents, and troubles that makes us stop and think where we are going in life's journey. We need to slow down and live by God's way.

When people came to this country, they worked hard, but if they keep their faith in God, we will have a reward of eternal life.

This will be remembered as a great Old Home Week.

Thanks again for everyone who worked hard. Your labors showed a great week. May God bless you all.

Nick Walsnovich

Greencastle

A day to remember

The Greencastle-Antrim Middle School would like to thank the following community organizations for their generous donations in support of our opening day festivities on Aug. 27: First National Bank of Greeencastle, Hagerstown Suns, I-Skate 81, Mikie's, Nellie Fox Bowl, Pizza Hut, Sheetz, Domino's and Subway.

You have helped to make the first day of school a day to remember for our students and faculty. We sincerely appreciate your support.

Maria Tucker Assistant principal