In Praise of Those Who Came to Our Aid in the Flood

Dear Editor,

 

There was so much good work done by so many in the course of our recent flooding. Among them, Peter Fox and two boat owners at the Rye Marina deserve special praise.

 

Pete Fox is always “on the job” whenever a weather condition calls for special attention to boats and docks in the Marina. He was “on the job” through the worst of the last storm to make sure all was as secure as possible.

 

At the worst of the flooding from the brook into the Marina, a man in a kayak was swept under a dock and would have drowned if not for the quick action of Rick Slater and Peter Trumm, who, with great difficulty, pulled him from the current to safety. Without their presence and that of Mr. Fox,

this individual would not have survived.

Very truly yours,

John Carolin

Hurricane Prevention Plan

Dear Editor,

 

Hurricane Irene caused massive destruction up the East Coast. We knew a good week in advance that “she” was on the way, so why weren’t we able to do something to minimize her power?

 

We have been to the moon! Why can’t we vaporize these storms while they are over the ocean? I’m sure our insurance companies would pay for this process.

 

Call your insurance company, call your legislative representative, and let’s start taking some proactive action … now!

Sincerely,
Nelson Sales

Keep Pesticides Off Your Pages

Dear Editor,

 

For the last three years I have lived in Rye and have read The Rye Record, and have appreciated the positivity in your overall display.

 

I write to comment about an article by Christopher Cohan in your September 9 issue. As a man who has been cultivating plants here — helping my parents with their landscaping in Greenwich, and working on a garden in the Catskills with my sister for the last several years — I have found Mr. Cohan’s articles informative and helpful. I believe a great many other readers do as well and, like me, follow his gardening and lawn care advice.

 

That is why I must ask him to please not recommend the use of pesticides or other chemicals. I understand the difficulties in keeping a lawn and I appreciate the idea of using milky spore or other methods. If my vegetables are downhill from someone who uses pesticides on their lawns, it no longer matters what organic practices I’ve worked hard to follow. I don’t want to feed my kids that. I think about the fish in Long Island Sound when it rains and know that fishing is fun but I don’t want to eat the fish because of the pesticides going into the water.

 

There are plenty of alternatives to pesticides, such as milky spore, and websites on which to find information, and I look forward to reading more about them in future articles.

Thanks for listening,

John Michelotti  

On a Spiritual Note

Dear Editor,

 

Mary Mundinger’s interpretation of the Wainwright House “spiritual mission” (“Letters to the Editor”, Sept. 9) appears to be awry. According to the Random House Dictionary of the English Language, spiritual pertains to “the spirit as the seat of moral or religious nature”; and relates “to the conscious thoughts and emotions.”

 

Furthermore, marriage is “the legal or religious ceremony that formalizes the decision of a man and woman to live as husband and wife, including the accompanying social festivities.”

 

As a Rye resident for 48 years, and past participant in Wainwright’s excellent programs, coupled with non-subjective definitions, I find no basis for the accusatory “off-mission” statements.

Regards,

Cecelia Kussner

Wainwright Off-Mission

Dear Editor,

Your recent article on Wainwright House challenges (August 26) was informative. There is, however, a flaw in the statements of current overseers.  The revenues needed to meet their spiritual mission – and thereby recoup their non-profit status – is nowhere near what they say is needed to currently fund the 5-acre, three-building complex. Most of their mission-specific activities are small, and could be accommodated in the original Fonrose Wainwright House (WH) on the site. This would sustain the lovely views and historic site, but at a fraction of the current costs the wedding business requires.

Ms. Craig states Wainwright serves 1,000 individuals a year, but that number is often in small groups. And the number pales in comparison to the usual 250 per wedding – which has the potential to bring a total of 8,000 guests a year onto the site with 30 to 32 wedding receptions — and even 3,000 with the new lower number of weddings imposed. The mansion and expansive lawns, the several structures to store wedding reception furniture, cooking equipment, etc., are needed only for their commercial venture – the wedding hall business — not for their non–profit activities.

The revenues they say they must raise each year are ironically needed only for the activities they have no legal right to conduct. They reside in an R-1 residential district in Rye, which does not allow commercial use.

The WH board has invested thousands of dollars to change the historic landscape and level the ground to accommodate the huge 4,600 square-foot tents; and to install plantings along a path that leads the bride and wedding party toward the edge of the bluff for the occasion, constructing two new stone walkways to the beach, a large asphalt parking lot which is kinder to high-heeled shoes than the original bluestone, and high, bright lighting.

This is a major commercial business, not a group aspiring to maintain its contemplative and spiritual mission.

Surely Rye and its citizens would benefit from a private resident in the beautiful mansion (which would surely draw buyers, and who would pay taxes) and a small spiritual center in Fonrose’s house, rather than the loud and raucous summer business now in place.

Sincerely,

Mary Mundinger