Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Cleaned Out...the rest of the story

Cleaned Out...the rest of the story

In response to Cleaned Out:

Hi Friends,
The following letter was sent today (Oct. 19) to Tara Vocino,

Templeton/Hubbardston/Phillipston correspondent for The Gardner News, regarding the inaccuracies in an article she wrote about the Templeton Food Pantry. The article, Cleaned Out appeared on the front page in the newspaper Saturday, Oct.17, edition. The Templeton Council on Aging has asked the newspaper to immediately correct these errors.

To Tara:
Dianna Morrison, director of the Templeton Council on Aging, and I are very disappointed with the article you wrote about the Templeton Food Pantry. There were many false statements and facts in the article, and we want a retraction put in the paper tomorrow correcting these items.

1) The photo you put in the paper falsely represents the food pantry. We gave you permission to only put in a photo of the hole above us in the roof. I told you our food was located on the other side of the pantry.


2) I never said that donations were down due to people abusing the system. You asked me if this were the case, and I specifically said no because donors do not know anything about the circumstances of people using the pantry due to confidentiality.


3) The Friends of the Templeton Elders does not fundraise for the food pantry or use $1,700-$1,900 to buy food for the pantry. This comes solely from donations from individuals and organizations. 


4) The Friends of the Templeton Elders does not buy meat for the food pantry. Hamburger is purchased using money from a grant that we must apply for each year.


5) Families may visit the food pantry ONCE a month, not twice a week.


6) The Friends of the Templeton Elders does not make turkey baskets or work with Toys for Tots. This is done by staff and volunteers from the food pantry with the generous donations of the community.

Your article showed the food pantry in a very negative light. It could actually harm the food pantry rather than help it. Once again, I want this information corrected in tomorrow's Gardner News! Thank you for your understanding and willingness to correct these errors and misconceptions.

Sue Lajoie
Elderly and Family Services Coordinator
Templeton Council on Aging


Gail Noel
President
Friends of the Templeton Elders 

9 comments:

  1. So many facts wrong? How can this be. The Gardner news strikes again.
    The reporting on this issue was poor at best but even when told not to print some of it they went and did anyway.
    Shame on you Gardner news.
    This is one reason i don't get the paper anymore.

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  2. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  3. I think you might like this poem DO.

    I watched them tearing a building down,
    A gang of men in a busy town.
    With a ho-heave-ho and lusty yell,
    They swung a beam and a sidewall fell.
    I asked the foreman, “Are these men skilled,
    As the men you’d hire if you had to build?”
    He gave me a laugh and said, “No indeed!
    Just common labor is all I need.
    I can easily wreck in a day or two
    What builders have taken a year to do.”
    And I tho’t to myself as I went my way,
    Which of these two roles have I tried to play?
    Am I a builder who works with care,
    Measuring life by the rule and square?
    Am I shaping my deeds by a well-made plan,
    Patiently doing the best I can?
    Or am I a wrecker who walks the town,
    Content with the labor of tearing down?

    — Unknown

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    Replies
    1. Do, anytime you would like to contribute to the blog, feel free to contact David. The blog still has the same job to do, as it did when Pauly ran it," keeping the public informed, and to give the people of Templeton a place to post their comments and concerns". We do not have the same colorful language as Pauly, but our intent is the same. People tell me they read the blog every day, but do not comment. It is good to know we have a good readership every day, but it would be nice if people would comment more. Doing the job of putting the blog together is not a easy job, but I think Dave is doing a fine job, and we are not trying to make everyone happy. That was Pauly's intent. Bev.

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  4. Do to post future comments please contact me at smart@nii.net.
    For more reasons than i care to spell out we need to know the people are that post comments.
    You can still use the nick name just contact me.
    Better yet anyone who we know that post are never removed.
    Freedom of speech is only if you put your name to it.
    In the past people would use others names to start trouble and came close to shutting the blog down untill we figured out who the peope were. What a surprise when we found out.
    The views are a steady amount and my uncle would be happy to see the way things are.
    We talk about allowing it to be anonymous again but that would only allow more foolish people to post things that were only figments of their imagination. People can be at their worst when they are unknown and that makes them act
    "super stupid"

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    1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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    2. so why was i kicked off you know who i am !! i went tru your check and still you kicked me off !!

      dave you slam light and water but if anybody comments on highway it is removed !!!

      so why dave did you kick me off !!!

      mike chojnowski

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  5. Sorry mike it must be a lack of email in my file.
    Please send it to smart@nii.net and that will fix any problems.
    With so many mikes that comment you can see how it may happen.
    I would have liked to see a back hoe do the road work on boynton street.

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  6. Nice to see the people afraid to put out their names still monitor the blog.
    Do huff n puff yall!

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