In recent letters regarding the school levy, one writer’s phrase stood out to me.
A levy opponent suggested we pay for needed repairs by “opening a fund for all of us to contribute.”
And I thought, “Well, isn’t that what taxes are?”
The word taxes always seems to evoke strong negative reactions in us.
Would folks have a different reaction if we simply used different terminology, such as “the fund to pay the salaries of police and firefighters,” or “the fund to fill potholes in our roads”?
To me, this school levy would be “the fund to help Port Angeles kids prepare for life in the 21st century.”
But it would also be “the fund that allows strong schools so we can recruit health professionals with young families to move to our community,” “the fund that educates the residential aide who may care for me when I eventually need assisted living,” “the fund that saves our kids’ lives when an earthquake hits”… I can think of many more.
My young-adult daughter received an excellent education when she was a student in the Port Angeles school system thanks to the fantastic teaching staff, but even then, the buildings were unsafe and inadequate.
It’s time to make some vital, if costly, improvements.
Let’s get our priorities straight and keep our children’s education first and foremost by voting yes on the school levy.
Deborah Bopp
Port Angeles