Letters to the Editor: March 9, 2023

We are at a precipice for the future of Geauga County. It may be irreversible if we do not act now!

The current Board of Geauga County Public Health and Administrator have overtly or by the consequence of their actions led us to the very real possibility of losing all of our Public Health employees to a contract with Lake County Public Health to supply all of our services.

A county which has a different philosophy from ours, different demographics from ours and a different passion about protecting our semi-rural atmosphere, environment and large lot zoning.

` It is not too late to reverse this direction. We must speak up now and take a stand! As our elected officials, you have been entrusted to protect our precious Geauga County and its citizens. Citizens you must have your voices heard before it is too late.

Please join me in voicing our sentiments and DON’T LAKE – GEAUGA

The future of our way of life is in all of our hands. Personally, I am in this fight to Save Our Health Department. Contact your local officials and make your opinions known.

Imagine a county of our size having only a Part-Time Health Commissioner who has no office, no desk and no phone extension. A Board that eliminates a successful Environmental Program, while not fully implementing the State Mandated replacement Program, O. & M., both of which has hurt us financially.

On Wednesday, March 15, 2023 at 7 p.m. Members of the HDAC (Health District Advisory Council) made up of your local elected officials will be gathering on the 3rd floor of the Geauga Administration Building to appoint a member to the Geauga Public Health Board from the four candidates who have applied. This is open to the Public.

Mary Briggs

Geauga County

Skip Claypool unfit to serve

Dear Geauga County Commissioners Spidalieri, Lennon, and Dvorak, Please remove Walter “Skip” Claypool from the Geauga Mental Health Board.

He is unfit to serve based on his comments at a recent meeting when he said people in “the LGBQT-whatever class” are not worthy of being supported. He went on to suggest Geauga SOGI Support Network (GSSN) is “harming kids” and “I’d like to put a policy in place that says if you have anything to do with SOGI, we are not funding you” (referring to GSSN).

He also said that transgender is a “made-up concept by a bunch of psychologists - trying to explain a psychological condition.” SOGI, as a local non-profit, has helped many LGBTQ residents and their families with support groups and valuable information. This help is especially needed if others, like Mr. Claypool, would cruelly withhold health care. Young people who are lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender, or queer are more likely to experience depression and attempt suicide than their peers. They need our love and support - perhaps especially because of mean-spirited judgement like that expressed by Mr. Claypool. The Board of Mental Health is to offer services that are responsive to the behavioral health care needs of the citizens of Geauga County. Any Board member who maligns local residents, most especially children, should not serve on that Board. The mental health of all individuals is to be addressed by the Mental Health Board, not just those Mr. Claypool approves of. As a tax-payer, I ask that you immediately remove Mr. Claypool from the Board of Mental Health.

Emilie Gottsegen

Chagrin Falls

More on lies

A couple weeks ago, a writer wrote that a recently elected member of Congress, from New York, should be forced to resign because he spread false information, regarding his resume, to get elected. Even though the information was false, the writer said “lies.” He was elected and is serving. On Feb. 3rd, a train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, spilling toxic chemicals. And what was one of the first things the Dem’s did in response? Biden, Schumer, Buttigieg and other Dem’s blamed Trump for “undoing Obama-era rail safety measures” designed to avert “such disasters.” Administration officials, including J. Homendy, Chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, said “the brake rule would not have prevented” this derailment. News media reports indicate that there are more than 1,000 rail accidents each year in the USA. Biden and Buttigieg, and a Democratically controlled Congress, had two years to investigate these problems and could have passed any legislation they wanted. They were in control. Instead, they did nothing, not even an investigation into the cause of these wrecks, until something happened and then misrepresented who was responsible. Maybe the earlier writer would have called this a lie. In any event, their statements were not true. I support her opinion that people who don’t tell the truth are not serving the people and should be removed from office.

James Kadunc

Chagrin Falls