Editor,

Lane and Tommy managed to accomplish something remarkable in their Feb. 15 column, largely due to their skillful use of the English language. They painted an ugly picture of a wonderful grassroots program called Neighbors Helping Neighbors, a collaboration which I am a proud member of since its inception.

Yes, there are several past and present members of Windham’s Town Council involved with this project, as well as several past and present Maine Legislators. However, there are a great many additional dedicated and compassionate folks involved who are regular everyday people.

We didn’t waste any time questioning the motivation of the persons such as the ones that Lane and Tommy essentially attacked, and we had no time to spare debating the potential causes of the problems that we felt moved to solve. We simply acknowledged that there was a serious need for meeting the requirements of folks finding themselves in an emergency situation, and that we could fill that void by working outside of the various bureaucracies and reaching out to our friends and neighbors in the town we all love, and do so in a non-threatening and compassionate manner.

We quickly rolled up our sleeves and got to work, with most of the initial funding donated by the coalition members themselves to get us started. Not only that, we are accomplishing this goal with no tax dollars involved, only the contributions of concerned citizens both in Windham and outside. Better yet, we spend every penny we get going directly to solving the various problems. There are no administrative costs, and all of our needs for supplies and printing of publicity material have been met through donations.

I can assure Lane and Tommy that by now I know quite well the fine quality of all the folks helping out on this project, and the folks they singled out are as genuinely concerned and hard working as any of the rest of us. Yes, those folks will be there after Election Day, and I will proudly stand by their side as we continue to move forward doing good work for the needy in our community.

Here’s a suggestion for Lane and Tommy if they wish to consider it. How about doing some research into this program as a whole, finding out more about who is involved, why they are involved and what we have already accomplished in a short time with absolutely no public funding?

Then perhaps you could draft another column bringing the positives to the attention of the general public, including a suggestion that other concerned folks consider making a donation to assist us in our good work. My number is in the phone book, and I would be glad to assist you in your research, and checks made out to Neighbors Helping Neighbors could be sent to me at the listed address. If they want, I could even arrange to have them become members of our organization in order for them to become part of the solution rather than part of the problem.

Bob Wehmeyer

Windham