Vincent Was More
Than A Prosecutor
Editor:
I want the citizens of
our great Eastern Shore to know that there was so much more to Sam Vincent than
just being a prosecutor. Sam Vincent was one of the most decent and honorable
people I have ever known and we were friends for nearly 40 years.
We met through an
organization called the Order of DeMolay, a group that teaches the virtues of
brotherly love, reverence for sacred things, courtesy, comradeship, fidelity,
and patriotism. In both his personal life and his professional life Sam lived
by those virtues on a daily basis.
As an adult, Sam
continued as a DeMolay advisor to a generation of young men in Worcester and
Wicomico counties. My own three sons called him “Dad Sam” and he was a father
figure to many other young men he advised over the years.
Sam was a Past Master of
Wicomico Masonic Lodge in Salisbury and was proud of his work with that
organization. He was actively involved in the Methodist Church in his
community, and truly loved the fellowship there. He was a devoted husband, son
and brother.
For over 20 years Sam
mentored young prosecutors, guiding and teaching them. He served one term as an
at-large member of the Maryland State’s Attorneys Association, a position
normally reserved for a prosecutor from one of Maryland’s metropolitan
counties.
There is no doubt that
Sam was a skilled and respected prosecutor, but everyone should know that he
was first and foremost a great man and an honorable human being. I will truly
miss him and I feel blessed to know he was my friend.
Joel J. Todd
Berlin
(The writer is State’s
Attorney for Worcester County.)
Help Appreciated
Editor:
I would like to take
this opportunity to thank the good people in the Ocean City Engineering
Department, in particular City Engineer Terry McGean.
Several weeks ago, it
became apparent that the walkways through the unfinished dunes to the beach on
the north end of town presented a hazard to many citizens and visitors trying
to access the beach. After several contacts with our engineer’s office, McGean
was able to arrange to have the walks repaired and made safe in spite of the
scarcity of available funds.
McGean was response and
kept interested parties informed as to the progress of the project. He
recognized the importance of this as a safety issue and stepped up when we
needed him.
Bob Kimmel
Ocean City
Paid Parking Talk
Needs More Review
Editor:
Last week much fuss was
raised over the idea of paid parking in north Ocean City.
Why you ask? Simple, the
idea while a worthy one, was presented incorrectly by the city. Selecting only
one street (146th) and making no arrangements for those who live on the street
was a showstopper before it ever got off the ground.
Two years ago, I had
suggested to the city the idea of paid parking on all the beachside streets
from 132nd to 146th streets. This way the city would be able to take
in some revenue from all the day-trippers coming in from Delaware for the free
beach access.
As we all know, most of
the beach area in Delaware other than the state parks is restricted access and
people need to go somewhere so they head into Ocean City.
Now before everyone
starts getting up in arms, there were to be provisions made for the home and
condo owners. Each home and condo were to get three parking stickers allowing
them free parking on all the streets. This way there would be a revenue source
and the residents and owners would not be affected. The stickers were to be
included in the city tax bill we all get every year and could be used in
multiple cars for when we had guest. This idea was simply blown off.
While I realize this
might not be the most popular of ideas, it may be something to be seriously
considered. The number of people who come into north Ocean City everyday just
to use the beach grows every year. The price for maintaining the beach also
grows every year and this could help offset the cost.
So maybe we could all
step back consider this idea or maybe even come up with a better one. Money is
tight in Ocean City government and the monies to support the beach needs to
come from somewhere.
Len Bender
Ocean City
Not All Part-Time
Employees Get Benefits
Editor:
I agree with your
article concerning the Ocean City Council members as “part-time” employees
receiving the benefits of health insurance.
Other “part-time”
employees of Ocean City do not receive any health benefits. Is this
discrimination?
Violet C. Steger
Ocean City
Support Appreciated
Editor:
We are very pleased to
thank all of our supporters of the Germantown Rosenwald School that made the
dream of the renovation become a reality with the exciting groundbreaking on
June 3.
We wish to thank
everyone who shared our passion for the project and participated in any form.
We take the opportunity to thank the following who helped to make this event a success.
The Mayor and City Council of Berlin, Mike Gibbons, Chuck Ward, Worcester
County Commissioners, State Delegates, the staffs of Grow Berlin Green and the
Coastal Bays, Gary Mumford, Sinepuxent Questers, Albert Collick, Pat Russell,
Host our Coast photographers and all the friends of neighboring communities.
We look forward to
keeping you informed of our shared work and progress on our renovation of the
Germantown Rosenwald School. Since this is the only remaining Rosenwald School
of the 11 that was in Worcester County, we are certainly grateful to those
donations that have allowed us to preserve this significant African American
landmark.
Barbara Purnell
Berlin
(The writer is the
president of the Germantown School Community Heritage Center.)
Church Applauded
For Free Programs
Editor:
I would like to commend
the Coastal Sanctuary Church in Berlin for the free programs it is providing
the community.
One of the free programs
it provides is a computer course that I attended. As a senior citizen (age 70),
I needed assistance in learning about and using the computer and the course
exceeded my expectations. My experience was tremendous. Not only has it
benefited me personally, it has also benefited members of my family and friends
as I shared what I learned with them. I am particularly pleased that I am able
to help my six grandchildren (all of whom are under seven years of age) learn
about computers.
The course instructors,
Gary Thomas and Sam Francis, are exceptional. Both understand how adults learn
and they teach in language that can be understood. Also, they teach in way that
respects the various levels of knowledge and skills of their students. Because
there are only four students per class, each student can get the individual
attention he or she may need.
In addition, the Church
provides a free English/Spanish course. This course is for students with
English as a first language as well as students with Spanish as a first
language. Participants in this course have found it as valuable as I have found
the computer course I attended.
I encourage anyone who
may benefit by these courses to enroll by calling 410-208-1582.
Jeffrey M. McArthur, Sr.
Ocean City
Unprepared For Disasters
Editor:
Our federal government
under two administrations has dropped the ball with a major regional problem
and unfortunately the Gulf oil spill debacle succeeded the hurricane Katrina
debacle in the same region of the country. Where are FEMA and other government
agencies when these problems occur?
The Gulf oil spill
started on April 20, 2010. Louisiana asked for federal assistance within a few
days, but the federal government did not start recognizing the seriousness of
the problem until May 1, 2010. In late April, Louisiana asked the federal
government (Army Corps of Engineers) for dredges to build protective sand berms
on the coastline, but permission to build the berms was not provided until
early June, which was too late to protect the coastline.
Approximately 150 boats
equipped with oil skimmers are trying to siphon off the oil from the surface of
the Gulf, but a thousand additional boats could be needed. Why isn’t the
federal government demanding BP hire and outfit with skimmers additional boats
that are available in the Gulf of Mexico? Why doesn’t the federal government
make Navy and Coast Guard boats available? I believe they could be equipped
with skimming equipment.
Someone mentioned the
need to have large tankers on site to help suction up the surface oil. Why
wasn’t BP required to provide the tankers? The U.S. merchant marine has ships
on call for emergencies. The U.S. Navy has oilers (tankers).
Talks by President
Obama,visits to the Gulf beaches by the administration, meetings with BP,
restitution by BP, and the eventual cleanup of the ecological disaster will not
stop the flow of oil from the leaking well. With all of our technology why
haven’t we been able to figure out how to stop/contain the leak?
And why were oil
companies allowed to drill for oil in the Gulf of Mexico without the
installation of emergency remote control shut off systems? The systems are
currently employed on foreign deep water oil wells.
The federal government,
with all of its resources, continues to be unprepared to respond to and manage
the resolution of major regional disasters.
Donald A. Moskowitz
Londonderry, NH