Letters to the Editor 07/20/2005

To the editor:

We received a call at 5 a.m. Sunday morning informing us that our building was set on fire. We were in shock and disbelief. As we rushed from across town we could see the glow in the sky from the flames and the sickening feeling in our stomachs grew.

This isn’t happening! Not in Sisters! Who could have done this hateful thing? How much more can this community take?

While our building is a total loss, we are just thankful that no one was hurt or killed. It was just a building and our dream, but it can be rebuilt.

We would like to thank all the firemen and women who worked on the fire and for all of your hugs and words of comfort.

Thank you Deschutes County sheriffs and detectives for working on the crime and finding a suspect so quickly.

Thank you Don Fullhart, (Fullhart Insurance), for allowing us to call you at 6 a.m. on Sunday at your home and for immediately coming to stand by our sides on your day off with your comforting presence.

Thank you Mayor Dave Elliott, City Council President Judy Trego, and City Manager Eileen Stein for coming out to the site so early in the morning with your hugs and words of comfort. We appreciate you and are proud to have you as representatives of our city.

Thanks to all of our friends, family, and neighbors. All the numerous phone calls, emails, and kind words were very much appreciated. Special thanks to everyone who has stood by us with words of support and encouragement over the past year while we have struggled through this whole process of trying to start a new venture and business.

All of this is the Sisters we remember from growing up. The small town feeling and atmosphere is still here. It is created by the people of this community.

Steve and Robin Rodgers, Darren and Donna Layne

s s s

To the editor:

When I opened up the Bend Bulletin newspaper on Thursday morning I saw the photo labeled Nicholas Patterson under the headline saying that he was under arrest for the McDonald’s fire here in Sisters.

I gasped in disbelief. This must not be the Nick Patterson I have known. Nick? ….. not the quiet Nick who is polite and thoughtful. How can this be? Shivers ran down my spine as I remembered our times together.

Because I was a teacher for many years, I always enjoy encouraging the artist in young people. In Nick’s Junior year at Sisters H.S. he was invited to our home with two pals to play the guitar and piano entertaining our friends.

Nick came regularly to our church with these pals until he went away to college. He’d come back to visit from time to time. We’d often have long conversations during the coffee hour after the service. He seemed to me to be one of those special people with promise. I’m saddened for him. I hope there is some logical explanation for this terrible tragedy.

Charlotte Milam

Black Butte Ranch

s s s

To The Editor:

I have been a resident of the Sisters Community and a property owner in Sisters for over thirty-five years and have been saddened by the change that has come to Sisters in the last ten years.

Before, if two young couples, raised and schooled in Sisters had wanted to open a new business (in this case of a Gas Station, convenience store and a very small McDonald’s the size of Ski Inn), they would have been encouraged and wished success even though it meant competition for some.

In the last ten years this spirit of camaraderie has waned. We now have an attitude of selfishness that says we don’t like it and if it doesn’t fit our criterion we will war against it. It is this selfishness that has brought shame to our City Council meetings with booing, hissing, and a showing of lack of respect and common decency.

It is this type of behavior that has fanned the flame of hate responsible for a crime committed on July 10. We are thankful no firemen were hurt.

I used to take joy in saying I was from Sisters, Oregon. Now I hesitate to claim Sisters as my home.

It is time for “The Friends of Sisters” to start trying to bring healing to the community rather than more divisiveness by filing another petition for an initiative identical to the one rejected by the city council.

Lois Lloyd

s s s

To the Editor:

I’m writing in support of my friend Nick Patterson (arrested for arson in connection with the McDonald’s fire; see story, page 1) and the many individuals in this town who have shown a remarkable level of compassion and love over this past week and the past months.

It seems to me that courage takes form in a place much deeper than the front page or the front lines. It lay resolute in the moments we least expect, when our disciplines meet reality and our identity is shaken.

In the wake of all that’s happened, there remains a love this town shares for one another, which I believe will far outlast the harmful events we’ve met. Also evident in the hearts of many is an amount of courage, which has shined through these times. I am encouraged by the strength of the people in this town and the room we all have for growth. My prayers and thoughts are with so many right now. God bless you all.

Shane Simonsen

s s s

To the Editor:

How amazing it was to read the publishers’ and Mr. Naturalist Anderson’s reactions to the charbroiling of McDonald’s.

Sure we should feel sorry for the now-delayed grand opening dreams of the investors, but really! The overdramatic reactions of shock and extreme victimization delivered by “nature intelligent” thinkers, come on! One has to question the lynch mob mentality of hate and anger (are those burger cravings?).

A few years back a female Forest Service worker arsonist destroyed thousands of acres of trees near our little town, endangering the lives of people and animals and scarring the landscape. People’s reactions were much more subdued.

Which brings us to The Nugget’s lack of or devoid sense of loss and heartfelt compassion for Bill and Jan Reed who perished in a plane crash. Instead of mourning the loss of a replaceable building, Mr. Dolson, who served on the school board with Bill, should have reflected on the feelings of an entire community affected by the passing of these two selfless visionaries.

Bill served 13 years in the often thankless job of school board member and Jan, among other volunteer works, was active in the SMART reader program.

I didn’t know them as well as most, but their countless acts of generous kindness touched my life and their good deeds and humble nature are a shining example to us all! God bless the Reeds!

Mark Kershner

s s s

To the Editor:

This is my first letter to you and I warn you that it will not be the last if the McDonald’s scheme to destroy this town continues.

The plan to rebuild the McDonald’s house of horrors is preposterous.

It will increase the obesity and decrease the “theme” of this town to filth. I feel that it would be robbing us of money and pride. Instead, let us focus on smaller but more important issues such as broken sidewalks, more books in our library to feed the minds of our children and things that make this town beautiful.

I hope that you and the rest of this town tear off your blindfolds and see the disaster that is McDonald’s.

Sincerely,

Joe Cook

s s s

To the Editor:

I had the pleasure of knowing the men in the Reed family through our shared love of aviation. Ryan received most of his flight training with our school and I was his primary instructor.

It has always been a pleasure to know Ryan, who is a fine and very capable pilot.

I recall once when Bill came by my office one cold winter evening close to Christmas. Out of the blue he dropped off a holiday ham for my two daughters and me. During those struggling times as a single mother with a fledgling business, his kindness meant more than I can convey.

He loved his children and community as men should.

I am so very sorry for this terrible loss. I pray for peace for the Reed family and friends and ask for God to be close to us all.

Mary Schu Dominick

s s s

To the Editor:

The moment of time itself has been caused to slow and even stand still for some.

Our community has been given great pause as they suddenly try to absorb the gravity of the loss of Bill and Jan Reed. There are no replacements.

Jack Addison