Letters

Where was mayor for Holocaust Remembrance Day

On May 2, I attended the Holocaust Remembrance Day commemoration in the county government building in San Jose. Dr. Glenn D. Earley, director of Holocaust studies for the National Conference for Community and Justice spoke, as did Bishop Patrick J. McGrath. The mayors of most of our cities were represented.

Where was our mayor?

Ruth L. Fox
Bonnie Ridge Way

Mayor, city officials lacking at county holocaust event

On Tuesday, May 2, an important event took place at the county offices in San Jose. This annual commemoration of Yom Hashoah, the destruction of half the Jewish people in the holocaust, was attended by clergy, city officials and individuals from many cities in Santa Clara County, except the city of Saratoga.

I was saddened that neither our mayor nor any other Saratoga official was present to attend this significant and wonderfully conducted event.

Gerald Daniel
Saraview Court

Thanks to Girl Scouts for cleanup of parks

On April 7, more than200 Saratoga Girl Scouts, from 20 different troops, participated in a Saratoga Park Clean Up and Beautification Day as their Community Service Project. We started out our festivities at Congress Springs Park with a flag ceremony by the Argonaut School fifth-grade troop. City Council member John Mehaffey and Girl Scout Council representative, Melanie Kimbel, made welcomes. At Wildwood Park, the girls sanded and painted, as well as picked up trash. At El Quito Park, they did this in addition to planting flowers.

We sponsored a patch design contest for a custom patch to commemorate the event. We received 42 entries. Narrowing down the choices was difficult! Cara Shattuck McCann, 10, from Foothill School, was our winner. Sophia Cooper, 8, from Foothill School, placed second and Ashna Reddy, 9, from Saratoga School, placed third. A poster with all the entries is displayed at City Hall. Please have a look at the creativity of the girls' entries.

Dave Mooney, Parks Maintenance Supervisor, and Lori Burns, Volunteer Coordinator at the City of Saratoga were fantastic partners with the Girl Scouts in putting this effort together. Not only did they help organize and support our efforts, they also provided all the painting supplies. We also had generous donations from Yamagami's Nursery, Longs Drug store at Argonaut Shopping Center, Almaden Costco, Kelley Moore Paint Store and Kinko's on Saratoga Avenue.

It is wonderful to be a part of a small community where our children have the opportunity to give back to their community in a fun, but meaningful way. Thank you City of Saratoga for providing this terrific service project. Great job, girls!

Mary Clabeaux
Argonaut Drive

Enforcing existing legislation is way to cut gun violence

In the May 3 issue of the Saratoga News, there was a long article called "Silicon Valley moms head for Oakland," about mothers marching on Washington to call on Congress to enact "common sense" gun control legislation.

More firearm legislation, like prior legislation passed with no intention of enforcement, isn't the solution--enforcement of existing laws is!

Remember the Brady Bill? The President claims 250,000 prohibited buyers have been turned away. But since it's a crime for a felon to try to buy a gun, how many criminals nationwide were prosecuted? Zero in 1996, 1997, and 1998!

Of the 6,000 students caught at school with guns in the past two years, a violation of the Gun-Free School Zones Act, this Administration federally prosecuted only 13 in the entire country.

Straw purchasers who illegally provide guns to kids should dread the feds. But in the past two years, this Administration has prosecuted only 11 people nationwide for illegally transferring handguns to juveniles.

Although not directed primarily toward children, enforcement works. Project Exile is a zero-tolerance prosecution project that began in Richmond, Virginia, and has since been adopted by Rochester, New York. It has cut murder and gun crime by a third or a half almost overnight. Based on relentless, no-discussion, no-excuses prosecution, any violent felon caught with a gun, whether he's raping or resting, goes to jail for five years, period. Visit http://www.nra.org/

Ray Froess
Ljepava Drive

Moving, while difficult, is sometimes the best move

As 40-year residents of Saratoga, my husband Joe and I were very interested in your interesting article about seniors selling their homes. We sold our Saratoga home three years ago and moved to the Forum in Cupertino, adjacent to Los Altos. It was a hard decision to make and a traumatic move going from a four bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home to a large apartment.

We are so happy that we made the move. We love the Forum and the wonderful active lifestyle here. We are busier than ever but busy doing a lot of fun things instead of cooking, cleaning, gardening and caring for a large home. There are 319 villas and apartments here situated on about 56 lovely acres. We walk two to three miles every morning in Rancho San Antonio Park and open space right across the way as well as on the many trails and gardens on Forum property.

We have classes in computers, painting, music appreciation, bridge, Mah Jong, exercise (including pool exercise), and groups in stitchery, poetry and ceramics. We take day and evening trips on our Forum bus to theater, symphony, ballet, museums, and shopping, plus we have taken longer trips to Napa, Las Vegas, Washington D.C., Branson, Yosemite, Laguna Art Festival and the Getty. Our New Year's Eve parties are elegant and fun! It's wonderful not having to cook. It's like going out to dinner every evening in a fine restaurant.

We own a two bedroom, two bath 1,200-sq. ft. apartment with a full kitchen. The people here are wonderful. We have made many new friends among the 410 residents and yet are able to keep our Saratoga friends and activities as well. We still attend Saratoga Federated Church every Sunday. We have a beautiful health care center on-site in case of need sometime in our lives.

One thing I would caution seniors about is the fact that you can only use your Proposition 13 tax advantage once. So choose your next residence carefully because there could be a big difference in property taxes. Also, you shouldn't wait to long to make the move. You must pass a health exam to enter a continuing care residence plus you might as well enjoy the wonderful lifestyle as long as you can.

Moving is not for the faint hearted but there comes a time when it's the right thing to do!

Betty Eskeldson
Cristo Rey Drive, Cupertino

Suburban children are no longer strangers to gun violence

I live in San Jose but read the Saratoga News piece on the Million Mom March at my in-laws house in Saratoga. I think it's about time that some sensible female energy brings attention to the important matter of gun control, regulation and licensing. Our children in suburbia are no longer immune from the threat of gun violence and trauma.

Thank you for bringing this event to my attention.

Vicky Clark
Colony Green Drive, San Jose

Congress should walk the walk, not just talk the talk

A 90 year-old great-grandmother from Dublin, N.H., has taken her message for campaign finance reform across the United States. "Granny D," as Doris Haddock is fondly called, has proven that she can walk the walk. For 14 months, from California to Washington, D.C., Granny D walked the highways and byways of this great nation--right to the steps of Congress. Now, in an election year, Congress has the unique opportunity to prove that it can not only talk the talk but walk the walk too.

Doris marched her last five miles to D.C. with hundreds of concerned citizens, including League of Women Voters members. She walked to spread the campaign finance reform message and to demand that Congress act to curb the corrupting influence of money in politics. She pounded the pavement because people are concerned that "laws might be sold to the highest bidder," because she is a citizen and a voter who cares.

Americans understand that how we finance political campaigns dramatically affects government decisions, from the environment to taxes to health care. Even though a majority of Americans and members of Congress support campaign finance reform legislation, it has been repeatedly stalled in the Senate by a minority of Senators. This is why Granny D focuses on campaign finance reform to fix America's broken democracy; she knows that citizens will regain their voice only when dirty money is rooted out of politics.

Campaign finance reform means strengthening contribution disclosure laws, banning soft money and closing the "sham issue ad" loopholes. Only when these goals have been achieved will Congress have the freedom to hand government's keys back to the people. Then legislators can respond freely to concerns about the air citizens breathe and the water they drink. They can react to the need for school safety and access to health care.

Campaign finance reform advocates, like the League of Women Voters of Los Gatos, Saratoga, Monte Sereno, will continue to carry on Granny D's message, and the question we pose to Congress is this: Will you tackle these reforms so the people's agenda is the only agenda in Washington? The League of Women Voters urges all citizens to ask Senators and to support campaign finance reform.

Patricia Khan
President LWV of Los Gatos, Saratoga, Monte Sereno

Council is courageous for recognizing the 'Million Mom March'

Thanks for your informative article on the Million Mom March--I am personally very proud to live in a community that publishes articles with a social conscience and pro-social values. I applaud the city council for having the courage to issue a proclamation to support the Million Mom March and take a stand on safety from fear and common sense gun laws. The DeCinzo cartoon says to me," you can bend her but never break her." That is my definition of a mom marching for her children and for all the children who march no more.

Cyndy Thomas, LCSW
Saratoga Ave

Correction

In the May 10 issue of the Saratoga News, a news article by Kara Chalmers on the Chamber of Commerce contained a mistake. The story reads that the Chamber pays for minimal expenses of Celebrate Saratoga!, like insurance and overtime expenses for some of the Sheriff's deputies and also for Saratoga public works employees. The sentence should have read that the city pays for those expenses..

Sheriff's Report

DeCinzo: Remembering a Horror on Memorial Day

Photo: Principal For a Day Emily Davis, 10

Photo: Trouble in River City

Robert Petersen Receives CPA Award

Saratoga Stereopticon

Sports Briefs

Local Diamond Teams Open CCS

Teerlink, Relay Team Win Titles for Saratoga Track