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We
welcome your letter to the editor.
Letters
should be no longer than 300 words and must be signed and include
a phone number. Longer letters may be edited for clarity and space.
Submissions should be typewritten if possible.
Deadline
for submission is noon on Monday.
Perspectives
by Patti M. Clark
NH Publisher
Meeting
needs of kids should be priority
As a community, Owen
County does a really good job of meeting the needs of its residents
during the holidays.
Anyone who has been at the extension office the day parents come
and pick up the presents that have been donated can see how giving
this community really is.
Unfortunately, those needs continue throughout the year and many
of them aren’t being met.
This fact was driven home last week when I heard a story of one
family who had to face the judge because their child wasn’t
going to school on a regular basis.
The excuse wasn’t what you’d expect, that the child
overslept or they’d missed the bus or any of the typical
excuses.
The reason was simple.
The child only had a few clothing items and the family’s
dryer was broken. If the child’s clothes weren’t dry
when it was time to go to school, the child had to stay at home.
A school employee went to the home and repaired the dryer for
about $10, but the story just broke my heart and pointed out the
needs that we have in this county don’t just stop when we
put away the Christmas decorations.
According to data from the Kentucky State Data Center, 16.2 percent
of Owen County children ages 5 to 17 live below the poverty level.
While that’s right on target with the national average and
about four percentage points below the state level, it’s
five percentage points above the regional data. That means, as
compared to the counties that surround us, our children are more
likely to live in a home with an income below the poverty line
than theirs.
Of all the families in the community, not just those with children
ages 5 to 17, 12.1 percent have an income level below the poverty
level. The state average is higher, at 12.7 percent, the regional
and national averages are all lower.
The median household income for Owen County is $33,310, a number
that’s lower than the regional, state and national averages.
The median rate is the midpoint in the income scale. That means
that half of all income is above the median point and half is
below. That translates to half our families live on less than
$33,000 a year.
These kinds of statistics impact our community in other ways as
well. Our test scores aren’t as high as they should be because
our parents don’t always place an emphasis on education
— sometimes because they can’t afford to. Our illiteracy
rates are high — 42.5 percent of the population between
the ages of 16 and 64 can’t read beyond an eighth-grade
level — which means our parents can’t get the jobs
they need to provide for their children.
As a community, we need to come together to make sure we’re
filling the gaps and meeting the needs of those residents who
have found themselves in a position where they are unable to meet
their needs themselves. That doesn’t mean a free hand-out,
but it means a helping hand, an opportunity to make a better life
for themselves and their children.
On April 19, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., there will be a meeting at
the Owen County Extension Office. The goal is to re-form the Owen
County Care Team and make sure we’re plugging the holes
through which our future is leaking. Just think, if a $10 repair
can make the difference between a child going to school or not,
then imagine what can happen when more people come together to
meet needs in the community
If you’d like to be part of this effort but can’t
attend the meeting, give me a call at 484-3431 and we’ll
make sure you get the information to help this cause.
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