Thank you for the powerful front-page story on Dr. John "Yonni" Chapman in the June 10 Chapel Hill News. I commend writer Rebekah L. Cowell for researching and writing such a magnificent profile. I love Harry Lynch's photographs as well.

I have the privilege of knowing Dr. Chapman, first as a member of the NAACP and now through working with him on behalf of the Rogers Road community in CEER/RENA. This story gives me a full rich background to a man whom I already respected greatly. Now I have the backstory on our hometown historian, and he is even more interesting and inspiring.

Dr. Chapman is our conscience and teacher, an extraordinary resource for our towns, county, the UNC community, state, and nation. He knows our history, and he fully understands our discomfort and defensiveness when faced with painful truths of where we've been and where we are now. He has a powerful gift for expressing ideas and facts that are difficult for us to hear, in ways that open our eyes and hearts and minds. He has the knowledge and power to guide us through the past and into a present and future that work for every one of us.

Thank you for putting him and his work out front in such a beautiful and thoughtful way.

Nancie McDermott

Chapel Hill

Traffic island will improve road safety

The Town of Chapel Hill Transportation Board thanks Lynn Martin for raising a concern about the dangers of crossing East Franklin Street at Elizabeth Street (CHN June 3). This is the location of CAP (Commuter Alternate Parking) where UNC students and employees park due to lack of space on campus.

Her letter was in response to the May 24 My View column discussing the risk pedestrians take crossing the town's three major thoroughfares: MLK, 15-501 and 54.

The challenge of using CAP (located on the north side of Franklin Street) is that after parking, the individual needs to cross five lanes of traffic to get to UNC (located on the south side of Franklin Street). The T-Board has looked into this matter. According to Kumar Nepalli, engineering services manager, the town is working with N.C. DOT to get a pedestrian island with a crosswalk at this location. If approved and funding is available, the town hopes to construct the island this fall.

There will not be a traffic light installed at the location.

Whether this will be a final solution remains to be seen. In the meantime, let us hope that the process does not encounter any unanticipated delays.

Life is precious; thank you for bringing this matter to your T-Board.

August Cho

Chairman for the Transportation Board

Silence deafening on school budget cuts

These are tough times. In the midst of this current recession, it has become increasingly clear that services will be cut, and unfortunately education in Chapel Hill and Carrboro will not be spared. I had braced myself for what was coming, but remain shocked by the scale of such cuts.

Neil Pedersen, the superintendent of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, has the misfortune of presiding over the district during the worst economic downturn in more than 50 years. In March, he let the parents and community members know that the district was facing extraordinary budgetary pressures and outlined several scenarios, the worst of which was a 7 percent reduction in the budget.

Things have apparently turned out to be worse than expected; reports from the legislature suggest cuts of greater than 15 percent. However, at a time when we must all understand and pull together to manage difficulties that face our community and our schools, we have not been given any further information. The silence has been deafening.

Moreover, it turns out that draconian measures have already been quietly implemented. Old budgets have been removed from the Web site, and the district has already laid off more than 50 staff/teachers at three schools, including teachers terminated the day after school ended. What is the plan to accommodate students who have had electives cancelled? Will the school day be shortened? Will students have an opportunity to choose other classes or does the administration decide where they will go? How many classrooms will be empty?

We want and need answers, Mr. Pedersen. Where are the cuts? Who is being laid off? How are the decisions being made, and are they merit-based, tenure-based, or some other metric? Democracy is a messy business, but the best process we have. The community will not stand for silence in the face of difficult times. Ignore us at your peril.

Shari Rivera Sharp

Chapel Hill

Corn bins can be dangerous

My mother's family is from the rural Midwest and I have a healthy regard for farm safety. The June 10 Best Shot picture shows a girl up to her neck in a corn bin. Although I don't know how deep the bin was at the farm mentioned, I am a bit aghast that this is being shown. Playing in a corn bin is very dangerous as it is a significant suffocation hazard for children, particularly young children.

Adults and children can easily fall all the way under the corn and even get sucked under as it moves around. It is impossible to see up from down in corn and finding a child could be a needle in a haystack situation. Children do die from this and kids in the rural Midwest are taught early that corn bins are not for playing. The image that came to my mind when I saw this was a child drowning!

My guess is that the bin must not have been deep at this farm, but young children would not know the difference. I am concerned a child would see this and think it looked fun and try it at the wrong place and time with grave results.

Thanks for listening.

Lisa Richardson

Orange County

Move road access to protect students

I am a concerned student at Glenwood Elementary School and I am concerned about the condos and business being built here at Prestwick Road. I am concerned because it will increase traffic. I am also concerned because it will increase the danger of there being crashes.

According to my teacher, there are about 400 children and they are from the age 3 to 11. And the daily traffic of cars, buses, delivery trucks, garbage trucks and recycling trucks already makes it bad enough for everyone.

I know that the solution is to make the entrance and exit on Hamilton Road instead of here on Prestwick Road. This will help decrease the amount of traffic in the mornings and in the afternoon. This will also help people who drive the school buses, delivery trucks, recycling truck drivers and parents.

Jackson Eberts

Chapel Hill

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

The Chapel Hill News welcomes letters and columns from readers. Letters are limited to 300 words, columns to 550. Writers are limited to one letter a month and one column every three months. All submissions become property of The Chapel Hill News and McClatchy Newspapers.

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