New Play Set for GSSD

By Sara Laub
The board found a great deal for a used commercial playground set for only $2500, saving thousands. This new set will last a lot longer than the one that is currently there. It is sitting at the park in pieces right now, but will be put together in the future in the place of the current playground set.
The other items covered in the GSSD meeting were, the board reappointed their positions on the board as it is required at the beginning of each year. The chlorination system looks like it will be under budget and steps are being taken to receive the county grant.

Radio Safety for NWSSD

By Sara Laub
The Northwest Special Service District (NWSSD) wants to invite everyone to come to their meeting on February 4, 2009 to help discuss the radio problems. The NWSSD used a $22,000 grant and $33,000 from their budget to put a new repeater tower in behind the Brookside Fire Station to help the repeater located on Flat Top serve the fire departments' needs. The repeater on Flat Top has been turned down to provide other Washington County services, but the signal is not strong enough to serve the district.
Steve Haluska is the Chairman of the NWSSD and his main concerns for the district are: there is no communication during fires, firefighters are not getting pages, and the fire fighters have to use their own cell phones. This is a great concern for the public safety and also the firefighters' safety who serve in our district. Gunlock has the worst radio communication in the district and cannot receive pages. The district was told they would be assigned another frequency from the Flat Top tower but it has not happened yet. Now, the NWSSD is asking for your support to get this radio problem fixed so they can serve the district as it should be served. Please call Steve Haluska at 632-3214 for questions or concerns.

Unincorporated

By Sara Laub
There are a couple of issues going on in our unincorporated area in Washington County. We have problems with our fire department radio towers and the county wants to create a transportation district. It seems like we have a lot of SSDs to deal with right now.
Since we live in the Special Service District we should keep track of it. Communication for the fire departments is a big deal, especially since we pay our yearly tax for their protection and service. The radio should work properly.
Do we need a transportation district? There is a form to fill out if people would like to protest the Washington County Transportation District. This should be turned in by February 4th to protest within 15 days of the January 20th meeting, as stated in the letter that was sent out to the public. There was talk that another meeting could address this issue again this month, so be alert to express your “yea” or “nay.”
In my opinion, I think we should be involved in the affairs that effect us. These two issues directly involve us and unlike other political issues, we do have a direct say. Whether we are for or against the issues at hand, we should make our voices heard in the unincorporated area of Washington County.

Gender Fun

You may not know that many non-living things have a gender; For example...
1) Freezer Bags -- They are Male, because they hold everything in, but you can see right through them.
2) Copiers -- They are Female, because once turned off, it takes a while to warm them up again. It's an effective reproductive device if the right buttons are pushed, but can wreak havoc if the wrong buttons are pushed.
3) Tire -- Male, because it goes bald and it's often over-inflated.
4) Hot Air Balloon -- Male, because, to get it to go anywhere, you have to light a fire under it, and of course, there's the hot air part.
5) Sponges -- female because they're soft, squeezable and retain water.
6) Web Page -- Female, because it's always getting hit on.
7) Subway -- Male, because it uses the same old lines to pick people up.
8) Hourglass -- Female, because over time, the weight shifts to the bottom.
9) Hammer -- Male, because it hasn't changed much over the last 5,000 years, but it's handy to have around.
10) Remote Control -- Female...... Ha! You thought it'd be male. But consider this -- it gives a man pleasure, he'd be lost without it, and while he doesn't always know the right buttons to push, he keeps trying.
www.lovelaughs.com

Valentine Humor

· The honeymoon is over when the husband calls home to say he'll be late for dinner and the answering machine says it is in the microwave.

· Before marriage, a man yearns for the woman he loves. After marriage, the "y" becomes silent.

· An English professor wrote the words, "woman without her man is nothing" on the blackboard and directed the students to punctuate it correctly.

The men wrote: "Woman, without her man, is nothing."

The women wrote: "Woman! Without her, man is nothing."

www.lovelaughs.com

Martin Luther King Jr. Continued

Dr. King was asked constantly to speak. So in order to spend more time with his family he wrote his first book, Stride Toward Freedom which was a success. While signing copies of his book in Harlem, NY an African-American woman stepped forward and plunged a letter opener into Dr. King's chest. Dr. King recovered from his wound and the woman was eventually declared insane. In February 1959 Dr. and Mrs. King went to India, the homeland of Mahatma Ghandi. In India Dr. King studied Satyagraha, Gandhi's principle of nonviolent persuasion. Dr. King was determined to use Satyagraha as his main instrument of social protest. After his return to America, Dr. King returned home to Atlanta, Ga. where he shared the ministerial duties of the Ebenezer Baptist Church with his father. The move also brought Dr. King closer to the center of the growing civil rights movement.
In January 1963 Dr. King announced he and the Freedom Fighters would go to Birmingham to fight the segregation laws. An injunction was issued forbidding any demonstrations and Dr. King and the others were arrested. Upon his release there were more peaceful demonstrations. The police retaliated with water hoses, tear gas and dogs. All this happened in the presence of television news cameras. It would be the first time the world would see the brutality that the southern African-Americans endured. The news coverage would help bring about changes as many Americans were disgusted and ashamed by the cruelty and hatred.
Continuing the fight for civil rights and to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, on August 28, 1963 200,000 people gathered in the front to the Lincoln Memorial. It was a peaceful protest, made up of African-Americans and whites, young and old. Most had come to hear Dr. King deliver his famous "I have a dream" speech. 1964 would be a good year for Dr. King and the civil rights movement. Dr. King was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize as someone who "had contributed the most to the furtherance of peace among men." Dr. King would divide the prize money, $54,000, among various civil rights organizations. President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law. It guaranteed that "No person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination."
In the winter of 1965 Dr. King lead a march from Selma, Alabama to the state capital in Montgomery to demand voting reforms. 600 marchers would begin the march but after 6 blocks the marchers were met by a wall of state troupers. When the troopers with clubs, whips and tear gas advanced on the marchers it was described "as a battle zone." The marchers were driven back while on the sidewalks whites cheered. 2 ministers, 1 white and 1 African-American, were killed and over 70 were injured with 17 hospitalized. It was the most violent confrontation Dr. King had experienced.
A court order overturning the injunction against the march was issued and the marchers were allowed to proceed. When they arrived in Montgomery the marchers were greeted by 25,000 supporters singing “We shall Overcome.” On August 6, 1965 a voting rights bill was passed allowing African-Americans to vote Dr. King believed that poverty caused much of the unrest in America. Not only poverty for African-Americans, but poor whites, Hispanics and Asians. Dr. King believed that the United States involvement in Vietnam was also a factor and that the war poisoned the atmosphere of the whole country and made the solution of local problems of human relations unrealistic This caused friction between King and the African-American leaders who felt that their problems deserved priority and that the African-American leadership should concentrate on fighting racial injustice at home. But by early 1967 Dr. King had become associated with the antiwar movement Dr. King continued his campaign for world peace. He traveled across America to support and speak out about civil rights and the rights of the under-privileged In April 1968 Dr. King went to Memphis, Tennessee to help the sanitation workers who were on strike. On April 3rd Dr. King would give what would be his last speech:
"We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I have been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people will get to the promised land. And I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord."
The following day, April 4 1968, as he was leaving his motel room Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot and killed.
(http://www.holidays.net/mlk/)

February 2009 Gunlock Town Events

Feb 4: NWSSD meeting, Brookside Fire Station @ 7pm
Feb 5: GSSD Meeting @ Town Hall 7pm. Feb 12: Gunlock Fire Meeting, Fire Station 7pm
Feb 14: Valentine’s Day
Feb 16: Presidents Day