Letters to the Editor: Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023

I read with interest the brief article about a local church helping kids in foster care by donating suitcases and personal care items. What an easy and inexpensive way to give to foster children! As someone who worked in child welfare for many years, I have a few other ideas: 1.) Support families at risk. Support private and public programs that help families care for their children themselves. Programs like parenting classes, budgeting classes, job counseling, drug and alcohol counseling, after school programs for kids, housing aid, day care aid, food pantries and soup kitchens and other supports help families keep and care for their children. 2.) Become foster parents. There is always a need for stable, supportive homes for children unable to live with their biological families, either temporarily or permanently. 3. Adopt a child from the foster care system. Give children permanency, love, and a better future and help prepare them to be productive, healthy, happy members of the community.

- Joanie Gutermuth, Troy

Empathy Surplus Network USA commends Ohio House Minority Leader Russo for the consequences she imposed on her colleague, Rep. Elliot Forhan, in response to his divergence from governing with empathy. Had she defined Forhan’s “inappropriate behavior” as a lack of empathy, her letter would have been more effective in communicating human rights empathy. December 10 marks the 75th anniversary of the historic passage of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). I hope readers will consider joining me as a citizen co-proposer to the Secure Human Rights Empathy Education Bill found at https://proempathy.us/shreeb23. Pro-empathy freedom voters in and out of office are the solution.

- Charles Watts, Dayton

Another deranged gunman shoots innocent people just months after being deemed mentally deficient. He then is able to purchase a legal firearm with his valid identification that should have somehow been “red flagged " due to the previous determination of his mental instability. We do not need more gun laws we just need a better system to track those people that should not have access to guns. It doesn’t seem that difficult.

- Rick Smith, Englewood