Inked for a cause

Fallen Lakewood

officer’s sister responds

My name is Tammy. I am Tina Griswold’s oldest sister. I live in Montana, and I have been thinking seriously about getting a tattoo to honor my sister. So, I was searching tattoo images on line when I came across the story of Golden Rule giving tattoos at a discounted rate to raise money for the families of the fallen officers (Jan. 8, 2010, “Family gets inked for a cause”). I thought it was a great idea. In fact, it has inspired me to make some phone calls with our local tattoo artists to see if they would be inspired to do the same. Thank you for printing the story.

Tammy Gipe

Kalispell, Mont.

PSNS

Norm Dicks is

our homeboy

Our local economy is stronger than most, thanks to the Navy’s stable and continued presence. For 64 years, Puget Sound Naval Bases Association has advocated for military contracts, shipyard work and on-base resources to support our region’s military. Thanks in large part to Congressman Norm Dicks, these efforts have been made possible.

Throughout his tenure in the U.S. House, Dicks has supported all branches of our military and is intimately familiar with challenges and successes that accompany our armed forces. He has been instrumental in ensuring our association has access to Navy Leadership and congressional leaders during our annual visit to Washington, D.C. He does this because he strongly believes in our armed forces and understands the importance of efficient and effective operations.

With his potential promotion to chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, we can be sure he will continue his support and advocacy for our military. His role as chairman ensures our military will continue to get the resources needed, while being committed to reducing waste and excess spending in military operations.

We cannot think of a better leader or representative to lead the subcommittee. On behalf of our 1,800 members, thank you Norm, for all that you do – for our community and our military.

Wendy Miles

President, PSNBA

Bremerton

CK schools community says thanks

On behalf of the CK Kids Matter Committee, we would like to thank our community for renewing the Central Kitsap School District school support levy. Because of your willingness to provide local tax dollars, CK will continue to access millions in state and federal funds and our children will continue to receive an exceptional educational program.

In addition, we would like to thank the hundreds of volunteers who assisted in our effort to raise awareness about the importance of this levy. We deeply appreciate that during these difficult economic times, our community recognized how important it is to support our local schools to sustain a quality educational program, maintain our property values and retain local jobs and businesses.

Sincerely,

Bob Ramsay, Chair, CK Kids Matter

Jeanie Schulze, Co-Chair, CK Kids Matter

We are proud to thank our community for its recent support of the Central Kitsap School District school support replacement levy. The 62 percent “yes” vote clearly validates that the Central Kitsap community believes in its school district and supports our efforts to provide students with the highest quality education possible.

K-12 education remains underfunded in Washington state, and yet given the current economic conditions, it would not have been prudent to ask for local funds above the amount approved in the recent levy. Successful passage of the levy allows the district to minimize additional program reductions. However, contingent upon the full extent of the state deficit, additional program reductions are possible. The school support levy helps us sustain most of the critical educational programs our community has come to expect and provides much-needed support to all our students.

As school board members, it is our responsibility to allocate your tax dollars based on one guiding principle: what is best for the students of the district. Decisions regarding budgets, curriculum adoption and other policy matters are made to promote student learning and prepare students for the future.

We pledge to remain honest and open in all areas of district operations. We strongly encourage community members to attend meetings, review budgets, and visit or volunteer in our schools. Thank you, once again, for your support.

CKSD School Board

Chris Stokke, Eric Greene, Bruce Richards, Christy Cathcart, Mark Gaines