Actually, Patty Murray has answered me in the past...or someone in her office.
Carl
On 10/26/16, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
It might have been more useful to send the letter, as an open letter to a
newspaper, than to her office.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Wednesday, October 26, 2016 2:24 PM
To: blind-democracy
Subject: [blind-democracy] my response to senator patty murray
While I've always voted for Patty Murray, even when she does stuff I wish
she didn't do, nonetheless I am getting cranky over some of the piles of
begging letters. Senator Murray begins by telling me(she calls me by my
first name!) that she just loves hearing stories about why folks love
living
in Washington State. Then she turns to me and begins begging for money.
The rest of her email is a long laundry list on how to give, where to send
it and on and on and on.
But hey! I went back to that short little sentence at the top of her
email,
and I found her return address, and I wrote her an answer.
Just in case she doesn't put it on the National News, here is what I
wrote:
Dear Senator Murray,
Well, since I'm unable to send money to support your re-election, I will
send you a response regarding why I would live nowhere else than in this
glorious part of Planet Earth.
Of course being born in Spokane in 1935 does have lots to do with my bias.
But most of my life has been on the Western slopes and most recently here
on
the great Olympic Peninsula. My wife, Cathy and I provide services to
older
low vision and blind people. This free service is through money provided
by
the Department of Education, sent to the Department of Services for the
Blind, and contracted to the University of Washington, with whom we
contract. We've been doing this for almost 22 years, serving around 3,000
persons. Currently we cover Clallam, Jefferson and Kitsap counties, and
Gig
Harbor. This is down sized from having also included Mason and Grays
Harbor
for many years. But age takes some accommodating. Besides being totally
blind, I am well into my 81st year. Cathy and I are rehabilitation
teachers, and have both worked at the Department of Services for the Blind,
for years prior to my early retirement and a move to the Peninsula.
So, with that short introduction, I will tell you that we have always
supported you and others like you. If we had our way, we'd clone you at
least another 80 or 90 times, and put you all in Congress.
The thing that is even more glorious than our amazing scenery, we live on
ten acres near the Olympic National Forest, are the people. Our work
brings
us close to folks who have been solid citizens their entire lives. They
are
folks who mostly brought us through a Great Depression, a World War and
Rock
and Roll. These men and women have not only done the work of keeping
America strong, they have put up their tax dollars year after year to
ensure
our nation had the wherewithal to provide support to all citizens. Sadly,
we seem to be looking at a period in time where some citizens feel that
they
are special and above all others. They have manipulated our laws to make
certain that their Greed is satisfied...and may the rest of us be damned.
I know that putting the Ship of State back on an even keel is far more than
one Senator can be expected to do, but if you have any clout at all in our
nation's social services, please do what you can to increase the support to
the older blind and low vision folks. This population is growing rapidly.
Yet the level of services, never even close to enough, is falling further
behind with each bomb we sell off to our "allies". Senator Murray, how can
we claim to be "defending our shores" when we are allowing our people to
slowly fall into poverty?
My wife and I provide a free service, even dipping into our own pockets to
do what we can to ensure that folks are able to maintain their
independence.
Again, thank you for doing the job you do, Senator Murray.
Carl Jarvis, Director
Peninsula Rehabilitation Services
2510 Snow Creek Road
Quilcene, WA 98376
Phone: 360-765-4239
email: carjar82@xxxxxxxxx
