Letters to the editor – Thursday (6-23-2011)

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Elinor Swaim was force behind Rockwell library
Rockwell owes its present library to the persistence and dedication of Elinor Swaim.
In 1945, the Rockwell Civitan Club began a campaign to begin a library for the citizens of Rockwell. The first library was opened in March of that year in the Holshouser Motor Co. Circulation the first year was 1,798. The library moved around in various places until a new Municipal Building was built in 1976. The library was housed in a larger room there.
Early in 1985, Phil Barton (director of the Rowan Public Library), saw the need to expand services to the eastern part of the county. At this point, Elinor Swaim came on the scene. She was chairman of the Rowan County Library Board at that time. Under her guidance and perseverance, a dream became a reality for the citizens of Rockwell and the community.
Trips were made to Raleigh, and a state grant was awarded to help with the cost of the building. Rockwell needed to raise $200,000. There were chicken pie suppers, schoolchildren contributed their pennies, nickels and dimes. After a short time, the money was raised, and the library was constructed in 1986. The Rockwell library is a thriving part of our community, with a circulation of 111,000 this current year.
Our many thanks go to Elinor Swaim, who made it all happen, and to Phil Barton, who saw the need.
ó Jacqueline B. Taylor
Rockwell
Taylor is a former chairman of the Rockwell Library Board.
Broken angel, broken hearts
I want to speak to the person who deliberately broke the angel on my brotherís grave at Rowan Memorial Park.
To you, it was just a ceramic object hanging there for you to break and stomp into the ground. But to my family and me, it represented the kind of person who lies beneath the headstone.
Itís hard enough to lose a loved one suddenly, but itís even harder to think someone could be so cold and callous toward the deceased. I canít be mad at you because it was done out of ignorance. When you do things out of ignorance, you donít see how your actions hurt and affect other people. You need prayer, and believe me, Iíll say one for you!
Please, in the future, my friend, let the dead rest in peace.
ó Lisa Bowler
Spencer
Lottery holds up the line
I get ticked off every time I have to stand in line waiting on some ěpatronî to make his varied and greatly detailed choices as to how he is going to spend his money to buy lottery tickets at the convenience store. What next? Are we going to have to stand in the same line while the prostitute services her john? Oh, excuse me! Thatís exactly what the state is doing now! Disgusting.
ó Steve Jacob Ball
Salisbury