O.A.T.S. Haunted Barn
Dear Editor,
O.A.T.S. would like to thank everyone who helped make our 3rd Annual Haunted Barn last Saturday such a success.
The event would not be possible without the support of the Brandon Middle School staff, students and parents. Again this year, BMS was responsible for decorating the stalls. In addition, the students gathered 300 pounds of candy to distribute to the trick or treaters and raised $630 to support our therapeutic riding programs. An additional $800 was collected during the event. The total of $1,430 represents a $530 increase over last year!
We would also like to thank everyone who came to enjoy the event. There was a tremendous turnout as evidenced by the fact that every parking space that we had available was taken. This fantastic community event would not be nearly as spectacular if it were not for BMS math teacher Julie Kelly. She is the driving force behind the middle school’s efforts. It is obvious the BMS students are learning more than just academics – they are also learning the importance of giving back to the community. We also want to congratulate Mrs. Madacki’s 7th grade class who won the “Best Decorated Stall” contest.
O.A.T.S., which stands for Offering Alternative Therapy with Smiles provides equine assisted activities and therapy to children and adults with special needs. Please call us at (248) 245-1020 for more information or if you would like to volunteer.
Elizabeth Pellerito
Executive Director

Attend Council meetings
Dear Editor,
At the end of our Village Council meeting on Oct. 28, a trustee made a comment regarding public input from the residents at the meeting, stating that the people at our meeting were only a small percentage of the total residents, and also stating that trustees have to represent all the people in the community. The comment implies that our council does not have to consider resident input at our meetings in making decisions for the community. This has been bothering me so much since the meeting that I feel I must let our residents know that not every trustee feels the same.
While I agree that all residents’ views should be heard and represented, I believe that people that take time out of their day to personally attend one of our meetings should always be given extra consideration. These are the people that really care about our community and the issues we face. I also believe that hearing different views from all sides of an issue will help our Council to fully understand the concerns of our residents, and help guide us towards decisions that will be better for the whole community.
As a Village Trustee, I want to encourage everyone to attend our Council meetings and share your views. I want to personally express my regret that this comment was made, and I hope it does not discourage anyone from attending our meetings to share your views. I also welcome your input by email (hayden@ortonvillevillage.com) if you cannot attend a meeting in person.
Larry Hayden
Ortonville Village Trustee
What if a town cried out?
Dear Editor,
What if a town cried out and their voices were not heard by their leaders?
This past Monday, at the monthly Ortonville Village Council meeting, a large group of our citizens were present to show their support for developing a public trail system in our park. A number of them stepped up the mike and pleaded our town’s case for this worthy cause. Unfortunately this was not good enough according to Dan Eshmann, self appointed leader of the Council opposition – not enough people and not enough worthwhile things said to change his mind.

Subsequently, The Fearful Foursome, true to form, cast their votes to approve Eshmann’s restrictive ordinance that shuts down any development of trails in the Ortonville Village Park Forest. Were we really surprised by this?
On a brighter note, it was very encouraging to see that so many of you took the time and effort to attend this important meeting and show your support for this very worthwhile project. I was moved by your passionate comments to support our Park trails. Some of us on Council heard you loud and clear and share your passion and vision. It is just unfortunate that another group of our elected officials have stubbornly held on to their negative bias regarding development of this beautiful forest and fail to see it for the gem that it could be.
Please remember, that while we may currently be disheartened and discouraged by these recent council decisions, if we’re patient enough and motivated enough, we can fix this mess. On Tuesday, November 3rd, 2020, our voices will be heard loud and clear and our message will be strong enough to remove these councilmembers from office and we’ll get our town back and get our trails developed, which we rightfully deserve. Revenge is best served cold!
At the end of the meeting Council member Mark Robinson demanded that I stop writing these letters to our residents. Let’s get one thing straight Mark – I don’t have the power to stop you from voting against the wishes of our citizens and you don’t have the power to stop me from writing about it. I guess we both have to accept this fact and learn to live with it during this next year!
There are still copies of our Forest “Trail Petition” located in various businesses downtown Ortonville. We will also have these petitions available for you to sign on Saturdays from 10:00 AM till 2:00 PM at the corner of Church St., south of the Red Barn and across from the Post Office.
Very Sincerely,
Pat George
Just give us your money
Dear Editor,
On Monday, Oct. 28 a Village of Goodrich Information Meeting was held at the Goodrich High School. The purpose of the meeting was to provide information for residents on village roads repair/replacement and options for financing. A fair amount of residents were in attendance but only three of the five council members were present.
The guest speaker was Mr. Fred Peivandi, Managing Director Genesee County Road Commission. His presentation was very professional but dealt only with roads that were the responsibility of the County. Since the county has no responsibility for roads within the Village subdivisions he could only speak to the process used for Special Assessments. The very first step to be taken according to Mr. Peivandi is to hire an engineer to give the Village a rough estimate on the cost of repairing and replacing these roads.
Councilman Barraco disputed this directive. After several exchanges with the Director, Mr. Barraco conceded.
In the eighteen steps used by the County Road Commission, seventeen dealt with engineering evaluation, planning and meetings for affected residents. Number eighteen was the collection of taxes associated with the special assessments.
I point out these accepted procedures by the county (VS) the current actions by the Village. The Village council has instituted actions that are contrary to well-founded principals in procuring tax money for the roads. Council President McCafferty insists that residents should be taxed first, so the Village knows how much money they have on hand. No plan, no evaluated costs or time tables. Just give us your money. New taxes for roads have been levied on residents by this council resulting in the Village collecting $83,000 annually.
An independent engineering estimate places the cost for only two of the subdivisions at between $1.2 and $1.4 million. It would take (17) years at $83,000 to achieve that amount. Do the math. It is speculated that several members of the current council up for re-election next year may not seek office again. Perhaps a new council can better serve the Village.
Richard Saroli