Category Archives: Opinions
100 years of service to children and families
As the clock steadily clicked to mark the end of 2018 calendar year, Tamassee DAR School continued to approach the end of the Road to 
100 years of service to children and families. Whether you were in Times Square when the giant ball dropped, at a festive party with fancy hats, confetti and the sounds of Auld Lang Syne, or simply sitting at home quietly welcoming the new year, once 2019 officially arrived, Tamassee DAR School began celebrating its past and embracing its future.
As we enter the first few weeks of our centennial anniversary, we find
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Letters to the Editor 1-23-19
Expressions of gratitude
Dear Editor,
What I am about to explain is something that newcomers to the area may overlook when moving to the South. The beauty of this tiny little city in the foothills of the Blue Ridge has, in recent years, been dwarfed by the sprawl of the bigger cities encroaching on our community.
On Dec. 19 of last year, we were faced with a family’s worst nightmare. Our son of 23 years committed suicide. The initial shock following his death was total devastation, and we, as a local small business owners in town, couldn’t even face customers. It seemed that all of our lives had crumbled in an instant. The thought of continuing on without a child is something that, for us, we felt we could not do.
In the depths of our despair, the people of Pickens came to our side. From our customers, we received letters of encouragement, which
The devil is in the details
There’s a bird feeder I dread refilling with seed. Not because it’s difficult to take down and fill, but because it is almost impossible to 
replace the top. It’s pretty. There’s no denying it. And it was on sale. That’s the most appealing part.
It’s hard — no, almost impossible — for me to resist those alluring words, 50 percent off, when they’re printed on a big, square yellow sticker on an item, I’ve wanted but hesitated to buy because after agonizing over it, I’ve decided it is, “Too expensive.”
Habits of economy are strictly engrained into my DNA. It’s that McBride ancestry on Mama’s side.
That’s the side that saves everything, reuses everything and repurposes everything.
Grandmama didn’t buy lunch bags to pack our lunches in. She drew
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Meals on Wheels head says thank you for 11 years
I know this news may come as a shock. It has certainly been a very emotional decision for me. After much deliberation, I have resigned 
as executive director of Pickens County Meals on Wheels. My last day will be Jan. 18. I will start my new role as the executive director of the Meyer Center for Special Children on Jan. 21.
What an amazing journey it has been! I am so thankful for my time at Meals on Wheels and for people like you who are committed to caring for those in need in our community. I feel so fortunate to have had the privilege of working with so many kind and generous people. What I have learned here will never be forgotten.
In 2008, I started temporary and part-time at Pickens County Meals
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Courier Letters to the Editor
Rubberstamp school board
Dear Editor,
When I was on the school board, there was two-sided debate on the issues. When the district administration brought a plan to the board, 
it was examined, critiqued, often modified and improved, and sometimes an alternative plan was put forward. Votes were often 6-0, but sometimes 5-1 or 4-2.
Once in a while I would get a complaint saying, why can’t you all just agree, get along? I would reply, sure we can do that. We can pass a policy that says everyone must agree with the superintendent or the chairman, or better yet, me. All the votes will then be 6-0 and all will be “happy.” We’d laugh, and usually they’d get my point.
Sad to say, I think we’ve got a board that has ended disagreement, with all just voting with the district administration and the board leadership.
This new board recently concluded its second year. I combed through their meeting minutes and reviewed all their votes and how each trustee voted (leaving out procedural votes like approving minutes or adjourning a meeting). During the past two years, there were 156 action item votes.
Only one item was voted down over the two years. Only seven items did someone vote “No”. Most all the votes were either 6-0 or 5-0 (someone absent or abstaining). The board went as many as 10 meetings in a row without a dissenting vote on anything.
This is a rubberstamp school board.
I also examined the votes of each board member over the past two years. Former superintendent Betty Bagley and chairman Brian Swords voted with the administration recommendation or the board majority 100 percent of the time. Betty Garrison, a former school district administrator, voted with the administration recommendation 99 percent of the time. Shannon Haskett, the Pickens trustee, was also at 99 percent. Those four might as well just call it in.
Phil Bowers voted with the majority/administration 97 percent of the time. Henry Wilson was 94 percent.
In contrast, my last two years I voted with the administration/majority 63 percent of the time.
There are many problems that follow when the board falls into rubberstamp mode, and I’ll detail one here. For instance, under the state law, the school board is given review and judicial authority over all district administration decisions. If an employee thinks they’ve been wronged by the district office or a parent treated unfairly by the administration, they can file a grievance to the board. When presenting such a grievance to the board, the administration recommends the board not hear the complaint and accept the administration’s decision on the matter. The board then can vote not to hear the grievance, thereby affirming the administration’s decision, or vote to hear the case and render a final decision, sometimes reversing the administration’s decision.
This board has abrogated this responsibility, and has yet to vote to hear a grievance case. Employees and parents are learning no matter what, the district office’s decisions are final — there is no longer recourse to the board, and the employee or parent just has to accept the district office’s decision, fair or not. Quite sad.
Alex Saitta
Pickens
Response to Fowler’s wall column
Dear Editor,
This is a response to Olivia Fowler’s “Let freedom ring from wall to wall.” Using your words, I suppose I’m one of those people who are
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Best ever? Clemson certainly has a case
So, raise your hand if you had Clemson winning by 28 points Monday night.
No, nobody? Bueller? Bueller?
That’s OK — I don’t think anybody in their right mind could have foreseen what the Tigers did to Alabama in the 44-16 win that clinched their third national championship, and their second in three years.
Heck, I was telling anyone who asked in the days leading up to the game that I liked Clemson 31-28, and I was getting all kinds of side-eyed looks for that prediction.
Folks, this wasn’t supposed to happen. A Clemson win? Sure. But a complete evisceration of the mighty Crimson Tide? Surely not.
Intercepting the unflappable Tua Tagovailoa twice? The offensive line more than holding its own after being put to shame in the Sugar Bowl by
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A wonderful time to begin brand new
A brand-new year is here, and I’m excited to see what the Lord has for us!
Keeping Christ at the center of our thoughts takes a great deal of discipline and determination, but so does everything else we really care about. It 
comes down to how serious we are about knowing God and how willing we are to give him total control of our life. Whatever we become involved with, he simply wants us to listen and obey his instructions, which is the reason we are here. If we abide under the shadow of his wings, we will walk in the peace and joy of his spirit, but if we choose to live our own way, we will remain empty and miserable.
Matthew chapter 22 gives us the meaning of life: “Jesus said unto him, thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.”
Actually, the Bible contains many passages where God declares how much
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Let freedom ring from wall to wall
Do you remember when the Berlin Wall came down? It had separated Germany into two regions and was an international symbol of misery. It 
was built by the communist regime in East Germany in 1961 to prevent its citizens from escaping to the west, and freedom.
Many people risked and lost their lives in attempts to get over the wall.
It wasn’t built to keep people from coming into the country. It was built to keep people from leaving. Everyone living inside the wall was unable to express themselves, travel without permission or question authority. They were completely controlled in every aspect of their lives.
Many people were shot by guards when they tried to escape. Families were
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Study: Puzzles, games don’t give brain boost
After being told for years that doing daily crossword puzzles or other types of brain stretchers would help maintain our cognitive abilities, researchers now say it isn’t so.
Specifically, researchers at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland wanted to look at whether “intellectual engagement” can help to offset age-related cognitive decline.
Their conclusion was that late-life ability was based on early life ability and engagement along the way. In other words, the more intellectual ability we start with, the more likely we are to engage in mental activities throughout our lives, so we have a higher
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‘Eight Flew Out, Seven Returned’
I wanted to share this heartwarming story as part of my holiday gift to readers, titled “Eight Flew Out, Seven Returned.”
Twas the day after Christmas and all through the wood
The deer were out prancing and looking for food.
A doe crossed the road at just the wrong time
And a car hit her hard on the road’s center line.
We looked out the window and just as we feared.
The road was obstructed with carcass of deer.
The traffic kept coming with screeching of brakes
They tried not to crash, for their lives
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