Steele and the media
As an unwilling witness in the Julie Hiatt Steele trial I am constantly amazed at the amount of coverage the press allows Steele so she can continue to tell her sad story (Metro, Oct. 12).
There are enough close friends of Steele who know the truth … it’s most probably the reason her friends have stopped calling.
— Bill Poveromo
Repressive Richmond — fight or flight?
I have lived in Richmond for almost 20 years and have seen far too many interesting and creative people flee the stodginess and repressive attitudes of this town.
The silly controversy over the colors that Bill and Regina Carreras choose to paint their house is just the kind of thing that drives people away (Street Talk, Oct. 5). Bill and Regina Carreras are untiring supporters of the arts and artists in Richmond; they are business leaders and community activists.
Richmonders should erect a plaque of appreciation in front of their house; but instead they are harassed.
I wish that those people who are determined to keep Richmond in the 18th century, whether by enforcing inane “preservation” regulations (what is the Commission on Architecture doing about those houses in the Fan that are being transformed into ridiculous pseudo-Colonials?), by transforming places of plain and simple into monuments of pomposity, or by repeatedly reminding the world of Richmond’s darker past would permanently retire to their Civil War libraries with their scrapbooks of old Richmond. Let vital people like the Carreras work to make dynamic this static milieu.
— Jim Long
Sneed wants his role made clear
The Family of Friends is grateful for the story you ran on 10/12/99 (Street Talk). As you stated, members of the Richmond restaurant community have been working for months to host a Thanksgiving Dinner, at the Richmond Centre, for the senior citizens of the greater Richmond area. The event is modeled after a very successful event in San Antonio that serves over 24,000 (mostly elderly) people each year.
Unfortunately, the article incorrectly stated that I “decided to bring a similar program to Richmond” and that I was “launching” the event in Richmond. In fact, I merely related what I saw in San Antonio to some friends in the restaurant business. Their consensus was that Richmond must also have a great need to serve the loneliness issue of the elderly during the holidays.
The truth is that many members of the restaurant community have been working much harder than I have on this event. It is grossly unfair to all involved to suggest that I am spearheading this great effort. I am not. I wish that the reporter had spoken with me, in my role as head of the media committee, prior to running the story. Nobody involved is doing this for publicity. In fact, it is so important to us that this be a grass roots effort that we have avoided taking on a major corporate sponsor, asking instead for donations of only $1,500 apiece from local companies.
The important message is this: The restaurant community along with the help of many local businesses want to provide a great time for those that might otherwise spend a lonely Thanksgiving day. We need more restaurants involved and we need those in the elderly care community involved. Anybody who wishes to help, either by volunteering an hour or two, or contributing money or services, can do so by calling the Family of Friends at 918-0170.
Thank you for your help in getting the word out.
— Jimmy Sneed
Editor’s Note: The reporter tried numerous times to reach Sneed but was unsuccessful. An editor did make a factual error, though, identifying San Antonio as the capital of Texas. The capital is, of course, Austin. Style regrets the error.
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