Appreciates VDOT road maintenance crew
The stand of bamboo near our driveway off Rt. 220 was blocking our view when we wanted to exit. I called the VDOT road maintenance lady in Buchanan to report our problem. She said, “I’ll let them know.” A couple of days later, the job was done!
What a country! My husband said, “If we were still in New Jersey, we would still be on the list.”
Thank you to the road maintenance department for such quick service. Botetourt County is a great place to live.
Nancy Kamwell
Fincastle
A thank you to Buchanan Carnival volunteers
Over the past year we have witnessed the best of “small town America” in action as Buchanan prepared to host the 69th annual Buchanan Community Carnival. We are proud to say this event is one of the longest continually running events in the Roanoke Valley.
The town is blessed by the generous outpouring of the community towards the Buchanan Community Carnival. From beginning to end, residents, civic organizations, churches, local governments and volunteers from the community pulled their time, talents and resources together to host an event we all can be proud of. None of this would have been possible without their support.
During the course of the year, organizational meetings were held with former and new volunteers to ensure a smooth operation for this year’s carnival. Committee chairpersons organized volunteers to operate each and every booth, volunteers cleaned and repaired kitchens, game stands, bathrooms and the Town Park before, during and after the event, ensuring the safety and enjoyment of our thousands of guests.
For nine days, dozens of volunteers donated more than 4,050 hours. We are extremely grateful to them. Despite the long stretch of heat and humidity, the high standard of quality set by volunteers for this year’s carnival enabled us to host a family-oriented event that will live in the hearts of today’s children for years to come.
On behalf of the Town of Buchanan and myself, I wish to give a heartfelt “thank you” to each and every individual, group and business for your contributions to this year’s event. We are humbled by your dedication and generosity – it has truly been a privilege to work with you. To the public who attended the carnival over the course of nine days, thank you for your support. To our donors and sponsors, thank you for your generous support.
Again, to our volunteers, thank you for the opportunity to work with you, and thank you for all of your efforts.
Harry Gleason
Buchanan Community Planner
Thanks for a successful golf tournament
The Lord Botetourt High School golf team held the 19th Annual Golf Tournament at Botetourt Golf and Swim Club on July7. We would like to thank all of the people and companies that made our tournament a success.
Special thanks for the hole sponsors that have supported us for all 19 years. They are Grand Storage of Vinton, Bank of Botetourt, Lanford Brothers and First Bank. Our hole sponsors were Affordable Mini Storage, Kennard-Pace Co., Mac and Bob’s, John Alderson Agency, Lesley Owens – State Farm, Cloverdale Car Care, Boxley Materials, Todd Selkirk – State Farm, Lisa Meehan, James Meehan, Bitter Creek Construction, Spec Rescue International, Valley Boiler and Mechanical Inc., Daleville Physical Therapy, Alan Johnson, Austin Electrical, Dr. Mac Scothorn, Spencer, Hager and Mosdell, P.C., and Dr. Jones – Roanoke Valley Orthodontics.
A big thanks for our tournament sponsors, Arkay Packaging and Don Ho’s Restaurant.
Thanks to all of the golfers who played in our tournament for their support. Almost all of the area golf courses donated rounds of golf for prizes. Many of the local restaurants and businesses donated gift cards for door prizes. Much thanks to Corey Woodring and the staff of Botetourt Golf and Swim Club for all of their assistance. Thanks also to Don Sutliff and the staff at the Sunset Grill for providing us with a wonderful meal after the round. Thanks to Kristie Simmons, Kim Bramlett, and Terri O’Quinn for running the registration table. Special thanks to the Cecil family who donated a beautiful Srixon golf bag.
We had a beautiful day at Botetourt Golf and Swim Club. Everyone who played received an additional round of golf and dinner. We also had a lot of nice door prizes for the players. We hope to see everyone again next year!
Todd Smith
Tim Rasnick
LBHS Golf Coaches
Keeping the balance
Freedom is a delicate balance. It wobbles and spins and is constantly at risk of falling and shattering to pieces. Moments after the signing of the Constitution, a woman asked Benjamin Franklin, “What kind of government do we have?” His response was, “A republic, ma’am, if you can keep it.”
Franklin knew how tough it was to obtain freedom. He also knew that keeping it would be a constant battle, not with other countries but with each other because everyone wants things to be done their way. Currently, we are losing that balancing act on many levels in our society, so we must think and act.
After listening and reading a lot of back and forth about the children’s books in the public library and seeing how divisive it has become, I realized there is something far more important underlying the issue that must be addressed. Freedom. The books are just a symptom.
One group is calling for the removal and banning of books that present graphic sexual images and gender ideology to children who are so young they read cartoon illustrations. The other group is declaring that any removal or any restriction is a violation of the freedom to access information. False dichotomies are very dangerous. If either group gets their way, we lose.
One group says children should have open access to graphic LBGTQ+ literature because they value it. The other group says that their parental rights are violated because they see it as harmful. In a way, both sides are right. Instead of a dichotomy, it is the balance.
Both sides are declaring this issue a matter of freedom, but the real issue is lost in the discussion. Real freedom is at risk, even here in Botetourt. But most battles for freedom are fought locally and personally. It is time for us to focus on the two real issues: adult rights and responsibilities.
Who actually has the freedom and responsibility that comes with it? Not the child, but the parents. The adults. It is not just adult choices, but parental choices; the adults who are held responsible for their child’s behavior, good or bad, regardless of their age.
Freedom is the right and the responsibility to decide for yourself. But your freedom ends when you try to push your choices on someone else. They have the same freedom that you have. One parent says, “I want my child to be able to walk in and read anything they want.” The other parent wants to restrict what their child reads because of the basic moral values they want to instill in their children. In short, it comes down to parental choices, not the children. If one set of parental values overpowers another and “wins,” real freedom is lost. This is critical.
We must maintain balance to maintain real freedom. That balance is difficult because no one really gets what they want. Let’s face it. We all want the world to operate the way we think! But when that balance is lost, only evil wins.
I can’t support book banning because that allows one group to determine what is right and wrong for everyone. I would not want LGBTQ+ or Marxists to have that power, so I shouldn’t have it either. However, saying the only other choice, public display sexually graphic materials to children, is foolish and is violating the rights, freedom and responsibilities of other parents and is contrary to valid research, so that is also unacceptable. One person’s morals cannot dictate another’s. The library cannot be allowed to establish what is right and what is wrong. The Internet argument is irrelevant to this discussion because it is beyond the influence of the library and ignores current technology.
The library policies are also contrary to established legal precedence on several other social issues. In fact, our society as a whole disagrees with the current library thinking and policy. Minors can be legally charged for having tobacco products, consuming alcohol, distributing pornography, driving vehicles and owning guns. They have to have permission to buy certain games or music. In many places, they can’t even be out alone after a certain hour! Those laws were enacted because of the developmental stages of minors. Society agrees that they cannot fully understand the risks that exposure to certain things, although acceptable for adults, is harmful to their developmental stages. Major studies from around the world, (including Harvard and NIH) show the mental health damage of early sexualization of children.
But there is a far greater risk than the library and its supporters have recognized. Their policy is great in theory, but we, and our children, live in the real world with some sick people. In case you don’t know, Google “Sex before 8 or it’s too late.” NAMBLA isn’t gone, it simply merged with the other gay rights groups in the 1990s. Even some in the LBGTQ community have spoken against this group! I am not saying the library is intentionally supporting pedophilia but it is providing grooming tools and opportunities for them!
As a mandated reporter for most of my life, I have had to protect children from abusers. I had to learn how to protect children from predators. Do you know that statistically, 93% of childhood sexual abuse is committed by people the victims and their families know and trust? Do you know that by the time a pedophile is convicted; they have already abused several victims? Do you know how pedophiles get their victims? How do they get by with it so often?
As a protector, I have to understand, set policies, and even take direct action to stop them. They have patterns. First, they get themselves into position of trust (children’s workers, scout leaders, teachers, family friends, etc.). When they have the parents’ and children’s trust, they show “love.” Then they slowly introduce the idea that sex is love and that if the child loves them….
This is where the books come into play. Some of the identified books could have been written by pedophiles to use to “normalize” sex as love! They keep their victims silent by blaming them, threatening to tell the parents, or even convincing the parents that the child is lying if the child mentions it. If you doubt me, talk to sexual trauma counselors. Many of the books in the library, due to child-focused writing and pictures, provide child-focused materials to support their pattern. Whether you like it or not. Children are always at risk and it is up to the parents and the community to protect them as much as possible.
Putting the books in a location in the library where children must have parental approval to access them seems to be the best balance. Notice I said “parents,” not “adults” as the current policy states. Parents who are okay with their children seeing cartoons of naked adults and mature body parts and explanations of and descriptive stories of sex, can provide permission to that location. If parents trust a pedophile, the consequences are on them. (*See the above paragraph). That section, to actually be honest to the library’s stated position, must also include books opposed to or questioning the LBGTQ+ material. The ALA has openly opposed such fairness. If you don’t, you are joining ALA’s hypocrisy.
Failure to implement a policy and practice that protects the parental rights of all parents is essential to freedom. The LBGTQ+ community is pushing their social agenda, obviously targeting young children (grooming). Parents have the responsibility to defend their children from such targeting. The library has no right to circumvent that responsibility and should be held accountable if it does. Putting the books in a restricted location doesn’t mean the library staff is functioning as parents because access is based on the parents’ choice.
The library staff should not even have to be forced to act!
Freedom is teetering. Children are at risk!
Rick Painter
Blue Ridge
