Where I Stand — Mike O’Callaghan: We can join the postal workers in helping the needy

Thursday, May 7, 1998 | 10:55 a.m.

NEVADA'S LARGEST FOOD DRIVE to benefit needy people will occur this Saturday when local letter carriers will be picking up donations. Just put your nonperishable food items out by your mailbox and they will be distributed to Southern Nevada's most needy people.

The National Association of Letter Carriers, 100,000 strong, will be collecting and distributing food all across our nation. Last year, this amounted to 73 million pounds of food. Southern Nevada Branch 2502 collected and distributed 370,000 pounds a year ago. This year, Julie Bryant and local letter carriers are aiming to collect 500,000 pounds of food for distribution.

Among those groups receiving food will be St. Vincents, Aid for AIDS of Nevada, United Labor Agency of Nevada, St. Jude's Ranch for Children, Lighthouse Compassionate Care, Prince of Peace Church, Salvation Army, Boulder City Welfare Council, Lutheran Social Services, Jewish Family Services, Griffith United Methodist, FISH, SAFENEST and Giving Life Ministries.

Also receiving food for use and/or distribution are Catholic Social Services, Child Care Center, Lied Dining Facility, Regina Hall, Migration & Refugee Services, Las Vegas Meals on Wheels, Henderson Senior Nutrition and Marian Residence Transitional Housing.

I can't think of a better or easier way for all of us to contribute for the benefit of people who need our help. Picking up all of the donations is a huge task for letter carriers, but it's a job they love to do. This is their contribution to further help the people in the community they serve.

And what does food-collection drive organizer Bryant have to say about the project? Quickly, she points to the hard work of her fellow carriers and the warm reception they get from our community. Recently, she told Sun writer Kristen Peterson, "The community is really supportive. We get kids all excited, bringing out bags of food. Some residents carry out cases of food." Bryant calls collection day "the greatest day to work. All the postal carriers have big smiles on their faces."

Saturday, let's all put our contributions out by the mailbox to help those who need it the most. Put a smile on the face of your letter carrier and, at the same time, help a fellow Nevadan. When they pick up your donation, the smile on your face will certainly match that of your carrier.

Last week, this column wrote a rather critical review of additional projects being considered for the Mount Charleston area. In fact, I wrote: "The very idea of putting a shopping center and convenience store on Kyle Canyon Road near the Deer Creek Road junction is repulsive. It's also unnecessary and destructive to the environment visitors come to enjoy."

Tuesday, I received a fax from Thomas Waddell of MTC Associates, challenging my calling it a shopping center and convenience store.

Mr. Waddell wrote: "As you can see from information provided below, our project is not a shopping center and convenience store.

"Project description;

"WESTERN VILLAGE: picnic area, stables for horse/hay wagon rides, steak house and BBQ area, family outdoor group activity area, general store with coffee bar, an inside/outside western/square dance area, game area and gallery, animal petting area, western gift shop, fish pond, gardens and patios, ice cream store, art and craft shop and western exhibits."

Waddell is entirely correct, the initial project planned for the 13.2 acres is much more than a shopping center and convenience store.

Again, I ask, how many elected officials want to stand up and take credit as they engineer the destruction of a valuable Southern Nevada respite from the hot streets?