Students work hard to reach out to...

Students work hard to reach out to military families

On Friday, April 25, the kids and families of Lincoln Elementary

School honored the students of Camp Pendleton’s San Onofre Elementary

School.

Lincoln Elementary wanted to give the children of our troops a

joyful distraction from the realities that are facing all of us, but

especially them. The hope was that, in this small way, our troops’

children felt warmth and support from American families through all

of us at Lincoln Elementary.

Friday’s little event at Camp Pendleton’s San Onofre Elementary

was a tremendous success. Lincoln’s principal, Barbara

Rothman-Haddock, spoke to each class, sending warm wishes of support

from our kids to each of them. Through a special fund-raiser, Lincoln

families and their Parent Faculty Organization purchased 650 green

beanie baby bears with a four-leaf clover embroidered on the chest.

On their tags was a cute little poem about it being lucky. Lincoln

students then made special message tags that were tied onto the

bears. Lincoln also provided yummy burgers and fries for the special

event.

The San Onofre students clutched their bears, the younger ones

asking for the messages to be read to them. Many of the kids named

their bears after the Lincoln child who had made their special tag.

We wanted to give a morale boost to these kids by providing them

with something special -- a joyful distraction. We were thrilled by

the response from our Lincoln families and children. This was a great

opportunity for our children to take an active role in helping others

going through difficult times. By the smiles on the faces of the 650

San Onofre students, I think they succeeded.

SUZANNE WOODS

Parent Faculty Organization

Second vice president

Lincoln Elementary School

Quality of life only for certain lives

Steve Smith’s pitch for “quality of life” is the ultimate NIMBYism

(“Living is all about quality of life,” Saturday). Those of us under

flight patterns from John Wayne should understand this, he says.

Well, why shouldn’t we share the wealth with our neighbors to the

south? No one wants the airport because everyone is trying to protect

their own interests.

Talk to the people who live in Newport Coast. They are livid when

further development is mentioned. Now that they are ensconced in

their homes, they don’t want anyone else in. There was a proposal to

widen Jamboree Road between Ford Road and Bison Avenue. The people at

One Ford Road had meetings and were out of their minds with worry

about the increase in traffic. Did it occur to them that if they

hadn’t built One Ford Road, there would be no need to widen the road?

Now it is NIMBY again.

Don’t talk to me about the quality of life. No one cares if it

doesn’t directly effect them. My case rests.

RHODA FRIEDMAN

Newport Beach

Councilman shows naive trust in columnist

Lolita Harper’s column regarding conversations and messages from

Costa Mesa City Councilman Chris Steel prompted me to give a little

advice to them both.

Councilman Steel, you are refreshingly, but detrimentally

oblivious to the political games played by most elected officials and

the media. Until you get up to speed, don’t waste your time talking

to reporters, especially Harper. She is not your friend and most

likely never will be. She salivates every time you make a mistake she

can use to her advantage.

Ms. Harper, you have writing talent, but your columns testify to

the fact you are young, inexperienced and self-confident to a fault.

What you think is clever could more accurately be described as cruel,

which is especially evident when you publicly ridicule and humiliate

people.

I have never met or talked to Steel, but his naive and trusting

relationship with Harper causes me to hope he becomes a better judge

of deciding whom he can trust in the future.

JANETTE BUNCH

Newport Beach