Editor’s note: The following letter to the Editor appeared with the wrong headline in a previous issue of the Enquirer. The correct headline and letter is below.

Board should
be elected

Editor,
The Hartselle Enquirer and the Decatur Daily both ran articles last week on the  mayor and city council-appointed Hartselle School Board. The board wants to get  into politics and educate the people of Hartselle on why the appointed board is  better than an elected board. Sure they do. They want to keep their appointed  positions and realize that if the board is elected some would go and some might  stay. They want to keep the status quo, which is one of the main things that  is wrong with Hartselle not being a more progressive small city today. They  are on the board now because they were friends with the mayor or a council  member or the wife of a former council member. In other words ‘the good old  boy/girl network. The 800 Hartselle voters that signed the petitions to allow  the citizens the right to decide whether they want an elected or  appointed board want a better school system. We don’t think that teachers in  Hartselle should have to pay for all of their classroom supplies. We think they  should receive a good supplement to their salary so that they make more than a teacher  in a small county school. Many had rather teach in the county rather that the Hartselle system.
It is not felt that a new super expensive high school will add one point to the  SAT or ACT scores. Good teachers and good students make this happen. This new  school is to be built by the board at the worst possible location in Hartselle  and will cost a lot more than what they anticipate. Ever think of moving the middle  school out on Bethel Road and totally remodeling the high school? The money saved could go to the teachers and  classroom materials.
We all want the very best education for our children and this can come about  through an elected board who is responsible to the people and not to the mayor  and city council who appointed them.
They actually, along with the city council,  should be elected by districts so our citizens would know who to go to with a  problem, a suggestion, a compliment, etc. As it is now we do not know what  person to go to on any of these matters.
Let me end by saying no more status quo. Vote to elect the Hartselle Board of  Education on Nov. 2.
Richard White
Hartselle

Grandma event a great success

Editor:
Hartselle Parks and Recreation hosted its annual Gorgeous Grandma Pageant July 23 at Sparkman Civic Center. The contestants were Louise Lawrence (Gorgeous Grandma), Vivian Summerford (first runner-up), Patsy Long (second runner-up), Jean Hill (third runner-up), Joann Montgomery (fourth alternate), Mae Sue Wallace, Margaret Mitchell, Vera Miller, Sue Edmondston, Rebecca Dean, Tempie Greenhaw, Opal Bridges, Minnie Mae Payne, Thelma Mattox, Maria Gargliarda and Movlyn Roberson.
The event was a huge success thanks to these ladies and many sponsors.
Sponsors for the pageant were Honeymoon Florist, Your Beauty Salon, Big Bob Gibson’s, Mr. Henry’s Restarant, Tony’s Country Kitchen, French Connection, Buzzy’s Jewelry, Libby’s Catfish and Diner, Lifeway Christian Bookstore, Hartselle Enquirer, Tangles, The Hair Shop, Full House Barbecue, Caddo Cafeteria, Papa Murphys, Americ Equipment Rental, Apple’s Florist and Hartselle Wedding Chapel.
There are also a few spectacular individuals that deserve recognition in this year’s crowning of the Gorgeous Grandma. They are emcee Mayor Dwight Tankersley, judges Lona Johns, Sherry Pentecost, Chief Steve Shelton and Darrell Harris, entertainment Larry Barnette, and ushers, Hartselle Fire Department. Also, thanks to Kim Poole of The Spot Salon and Emily McFee of Twister Scissors for arriving early to help style the ladies’ hair and Avon representative Martha Wise for applying makeup.
There is no possible way this event could have happened without the assistance of all these generous people and companies.
Each of them is truly an asset to our community. Once again, thank you for helping us make the Gorgeous Grandma Pageant a success.
Hartselle Park and Recreation Department

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