From Our Mailbag

To the editor:
It is imperative that rail service to Aroostook County be preserved. When the recession actually ends and new housing starts return to normal levels, those mills in Sherman, Masardis, Ashland, Skerry (Nashville) and other locations will not be viable without rail as an option.     Without a rail transportation option, the shippers currently using rail may find that higher transportation costs would affect their viability. Losing the potential for rail service could limit industrial development of the Loring facility.
The state of Maine needs to purchase the track, bridges, right of way and other improvements from the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic for net salvage value. That is the amount the railroad would receive if the infrastructure were abandoned. A lease and operating agreement could be written which would include payments from the railroad to the state which increase as carloads increase.
I worked from 1978 until 2003 as a Railroad Safety Inspector for the Federal Railroad Administration and can state that this railroad segment is generally in sound condition. It is operated and maintained by well qualified and motivated men and women, many of whom live and work in The County. A cooperative effort by our state, the railroad, users of the railroad and local leaders can preserve a transportation system which could never be replaced.

To the editor:
I am the pastor of Sanctuary of Hope Ministries here in Houlton. I am also the facilitator as well as the State Representative for a program called “Celebrate Recovery.”
The local meeting is Tuesday nights at the Houlton United Methodist Church; we serve a meal for the public at 6:30 p.m., followed by a large “open” 12-step meeting at 7 p.m. This is followed by gender specific groups after the open meeting. We also have small group studies for a large number of other additions on different days of the week.
Celebrate Recovery was started at Saddleback Church in California over 18 years ago. Pastor Rick Warren, with the help of Pastor John Baker, used the AA 12 steps by permission, and added a faith based teaching to the program. We use the terms Hurts, Hang-ups, and Habits rather than addictions because this gives a more personal touch to the program because not everyone has addictions but we can all relate to the phrase hurts, hang-ups and habits.
On February 9th, Celebrate Recovery celebrated four years of service in Houlton, Maine! It was attended by past, present, and future attendees of the program. Over 125 individuals whose lives have been changed by this awesome program attended. Currently, Celebrate Recovery has over 20 programs statewide and it continues to grow. Over 500 individuals have attended the local program.
This program is a faith based program that can and should be used in all churches. We are not centered around any one denomination and are not limited to anything other than Jesus Christ being the center of the program. I am willing to help any church start their own Celebrate Recovery program.
I would like to conclude by saying thank you to all the area agencies who are connected to this program. Because of your support, this awesome ministry has been successful for four years in Houlton, Maine and continues to serve the whole state of Maine. I am very blessed to be part of such a wonderful program and look forward to the success it has had in the region.
You may contact me at 207-538-0007, write me at P.O. Box 1584, Houlton, Maine 04730 or go to the national Web site for more Maine listings at SaddlebackChurch.org.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me and I will be glad to answer any and all inquiries. Blessings to you.

To the editor:
America is so unique and beautiful. We are the only nation in the whole world without an original nationality. If we were “animals” we’d be known as a “mixed breed”, but we are humans not animals! Why is America so beautiful? To start with, America is beautiful because it’s willing to help any nation in the world when they are in distress. For decades we (Americans) have helped any nation in the world that honestly needed help in their situation.
When God created this world He created Adam and Eve as the first two humans in the world. Later on He let some of their descendants find the other continents that He created for them to settle down on. I believe that He had it planned for people from every other nation to immigrate into this part of the world — now known as the U.S.A. or America, communicate with everyone else and begin a new country. That is why America should be known as the “heart” of the world. I believe that when God created this world, He built it like He would make a human body. No organ can survive without some help from the heart. Other organs are also important. A body could survive without some of them, but the heart loves every organ in the body.
Today, America is the heartbeat of the whole world. Do you think that it would be possible for just one organization to kill the whole world? Well, most of the world’s population (including me) know that this cannot be true. Hopefully, everyone knows of the world’s creator — God. The world will not end until it is in God’s time. And then the believers that are still here on earth will enter heaven. Satan is trying to fool people, but if we stay within God’s reach, we will definitely be safe.
I know this is true. In 1986 I was in an accident and I died. I have a testimony about that experience. If you’d like to read it just ask me for it. I’m almost positive that this world is at the end of times according to the Bible. How long before the world ends? I have no idea, but to make it a lot easier to handle you could help God by spending any spare moment that you have to tell people that these last days on earth might be “a taste of Hell”. Heaven is a much nicer place than anyone has ever seen on earth and that you have the only answer. The answer is in the Bible — John 3:16. And then ask them to pray to God and ask Him to help them act more Christianly here on earth and to take them home to Heaven when it is time to end their life here on this earth.
While I was in Heaven I saw many people up there. I didn’t stay there very long before I came back to earth to re-enter my dead body, but I actually spoke to a lot of my relatives that have been dead for years! I’m going to spend the rest of my life trying to convince people to follow me and with God’s help and yours, too, I believe we will all convince a lot of people. Please join the Heavenly crowd with me and billions more!

To the editor:
I write today regarding the passing of John F. Dionne of Grand Isle, one of the St. John Valley’s most powerful advocates.
Even for those that did not know him personally, John was familiar to many through his tireless advocacy on behalf of the Valley and Aroostook County as a whole. His letters to the editor, guest columns, and continuous outreach to state and federal legislators carried his message far and wide. He brought his entrepreneurial spirit to each new endeavor, even in retirement, and this spirit served as an example to many.
Through his advocacy and civic commitments, John touched many lives. He will be mourned and celebrated by many. To his family, friends, and other admirers, I am proud to celebrate John’s civic and family life with you, as well as his many contributions toward the economic development of the St. John Valley and the state of Maine.

To the editor:
I am writing because I moved from Houlton to Tennessee in 1996 and for over 13 years I really had forgotten about how wonderful and generous our Houlton Animal Shelter was. The city I live in now has a shelter that is good, but a lot of sweet, kind, gentle animals are put to sleep and it breaks my heart. So my way of helping is to feed my neighborhood homeless, pretty much feral cat tribe, which of course I’ve named all of them. This way I figure they get some kind of a chance and though they are at the moment still a little wild and sometimes cold, they eat pretty good and I spend all the time that my little Yorkie “Harley” will allow me!
The reason I’m writing though is that Cathy Davis’ news article “Pet Talk” inspires me every time I read it, it makes me want to feed more strays, spay more stray cats, donate whatever time I can to any animal organization, as well as make small but I’m sure helpful, donations to the Humane Society and ASPCA. We were given a subscription to the Houlton Pioneer by a family member for the next year and I flip through the pages with a bunch of speed, scanning the pages, until I find “Pet Talk”. Cathy has always been great with words and inspirational as well, but when you’re not close by any more, those words are comforting. She is probably the reason I spend over $20 a week on cat food and don’t really own a cat.
In a December column, she talked about thanking all of the volunteers. Well I think Cathy Davis is one of those volunteers that everyone should be thanking for all that she does. She is truly an inspiration! Thank you Cathy, I look forward to reading all your future columns. I really hope all is well with you and yours and reading your columns brought a little bit of home back into my life. God Bless.

To the editor:
Health care reform remains a critical issue and continues to take shape in Washington. For the good of America, let us hope our elected representatives focus on assuring that appropriate affordable private or public coverage is made available and that the exorbitant cost of health care is reduced. The nation collectively, our employers and each of us cannot let reform fail. What we have now is not working.
Where I work, no one can afford to provide insurance coverage for his or her family. Our insurance has increased yearly by double digits and our last premium increase pushed family coverage to $25,536 a year. The median income for a family in Aroostook County is $36,107 a year. Who can imagine spending 71 percent of income just for health insurance? How long will it take before such increases makes insurance unaffordable for all?
I shake my head in disbelief when I hear those opposing reform say Congress must avoid destroying the private, employer-based insurance system that is working so well. It sure is not working well for any employer I am familiar with. Even many with insurance coverage face growing deductibles that make all but catastrophic care the only care they can receive.
Opponents of reform have used half-truths, distortion and distraction to move the focus away from what needs to be done. The status quo is not the answer. Too many of us are uninsured and the number grows daily, the underinsured are increasing, employers and employees cannot afford continued double-digit increases.
We have an opportunity to set the system on a better track. It now depends on our elected representatives doing the right thing.