Donor upset with Mayor’s comments
To the editor:
After reading the Marion City Council report in the Marion County Record, dated Feb. 24, I felt compelled to write this letter to the editor in response to Mayor Mary Olson’s comments that persons who build a memorial to a loved one and donate it to the city of Marion should also have to see that funds are available for the maintenance of that memorial.
Last year, my family raised funds for a memorial to my cousin who lost his battle with cancer. With Mark’s memorial money, we decided that we would like to build a shelter house in Brooker Park in memory of Mark Applegate. With the remaining funds donated by his wife, Patty Applegate, we were able to raise enough funds to complete this project — which cost in excess of $20,000 — and donate it to the city of Marion for people to enjoy.
It is my understanding that Mayor Olson is of the opinion that anyone who wishes to donate such a memorial should also have to provide funds for the maintenance of such a project, stating that taxpayers should not be required to pay for this maintenance, even though they will benefit from the use of it. Needless to say, if that were the case, when we decided to donate this memorial the city for its citizens to enjoy, we never would have built it.
I would think that anyone who wishes to make a donation such as this to the city should not be required to fund the maintenance for their generous donation. The city should be responsible for these costs since taxpayers get the benefit of these donations at no cost to them in the first place.
Kodi Kelsey
Marion