Veterans deserve more respect than social media posts and barbecues on Veterans Day

Support veterans

I am writing to say that we need to do more to recognize our troops and the sacrifice they make. On Veteran’s Day and Memorial Day, we make posts on our social media accounts, but what is that really doing?

People have family gatherings and grill out, but aren’t really thinking about the hardships these veterans went through.

We need to educate ourselves and understand what went into our troops losing their lives.

Allyson Henson, Leeds

Kudos to superintendent

Frank Rodriguez is an outstanding leader for our Beaufort County School District:

22,000 students, 30 schools, hundreds of employees, 11 bosses and COVID.

He has an overwhelming responsibility which he handles quite admirably with honesty, dedication, and educational knowledge despite the petty negative behavior of some who place themselves above the good of the school district.

We are very lucky to have him as our school superintendent

Kudos Frank Rodriguez -- you are appreciated!

Lyn Piwko Bullard, Hilton Head

Inclusion training necessary

Regarding the politicization of the “inclusion and diversity” training provided by the Office of Cultural Affairs, I urge people to recognize that these are not 21st century concepts.

As a psychologist, I provided this training as far back as the 1980s to teachers, doctors and fire and police departments.

Distilled down, this training teaches each of us to be sensitive to the needs of the people around us: to their cultures, their disabilities, their genders.

This is not a new idea, nor is it scary. It is necessary.

Susan Sigalow, Hilton Head

Columns enhance community

I wish to thank the Packet for allowing me to enjoy 20 years of David Lauderdale’s columns capturing the essence of history and current events in our area.

David has provided myriad columns that touched me personally, none more than his Nov. 4 column on the Braves winning the World Series. More than just a nice congratulations to the team and fans, David brought the language of his own life experiences that should touch the hearts of many baseball fans spread across the South. It was a reminder of the historical significance of baseball that has shaped the lives of so many people.

There have been many columnists through the years who gave us special touches of baseball histories, many from New York, New England, Chicago, St Louis, then West to Kansas City, Los Angeles and San Francisco. All added immeasurably to our reading enjoyment.

David belongs in that full list of historians, not only for this current baseball piece, but for all his hundreds of daily reflections on life in our island community.

Albert Slechter, Bluffton