LETTERS: Lew-Port election thoughts

Niagara Gazette

April 29, 2008 04:24 pm

— Lew-Port
election thoughts
After much deliberation, I have decided not to seek re-election to the Lewiston-Porter Board of Education for many personal reasons, but primarily due to the fact that I have a number of family and individual commitments during the coming year that would prevent me from focusing the enormous amount of time and energy that I believe is so necessary to serving one’s community as an effective board member. Despite the needless and counter-productive controversy that seems to contaminate the politics of the Lew-Port school board, I have thoroughly enjoyed meeting and serving so many wonderful students, parents and staff members of our fine school system during the past three years.
My decision to step down certainly was made much easier with the knowledge that I can enthusiastically support two excellent candidates in the coming election: Bonnie Gifford and Jim Mezhir. Bonnie and Jim are intelligent, experienced individuals with the ability, integrity and fiscal responsibility to move our district forward in a positive direction. They both understand the many dimensions of school district operations and are dedicated to providing the best possible education for the kids of our community.
As a retired senior citizen, it is my intention to stay involved with the district in some volunteer capacity during the coming year and I certainly will not rule out a run for one of the two seats available in the 2009 board elections. I have far too many green and white articles of clothing hanging in my closet to just walk away!
Robert Laub
President, Lewiston-Porter Board of Education

A word of thanks
I would like to thank the kind, good lady at Casino Niagara who helped me on April 9. I had gone to my doctor to have my eyes checked for glasses. From there, I went to the casino with great difficulty because the doctor had put eyedrops in my eyes. From there, I should have gone to the NFTA bus stand. (I am destined to walk or travel by bus.) But I went to the casino to use the restroom. As soon as I entered the casino, I could not see anything because of the eyedrops in my eyes. Fortunately, I asked a lady standing near the entrance counter to help me to the restroom. Not only did she help me, she also helped me to back to the entrance door from where I walked to the bus stand. Thank you, kind lady.
As this incident is related to my weak eyes, I will also like to mention our first legally-blind governor who just recently presented his first budget. My trouble arose because of eyedrops into my eyes. But I hope Gov. David Patterson also cares or will take care of others who are visually impaired or affected or disabled by weak eyesight. I do not know whether the casino is user friendly to visually impaired people. Of course, gambling is best played in dim light. There are always facilities for people going in wheelchairs. And so a beginning should be made to facilitate some public places where it may become easier for visually-impaired people to visit.
Wilson A. Solanki
Niagara Falls