LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dear Bay State Parent,

I became very angry reading your article on the Catholic Charities (Adoption Insights, April issue). It is the state that is discriminatory not the church. If it were truly about the children then same sex families can adopt from a variety of other secular agencies. They are not forced to adhere to the Catholic doctrine. Ms. Duddy-Burke and her partner might be wonderful people, maybe even good Christians. She is a Catholic in name only. In the Catholic church, the Pope's word is law. The Pope is guided by God, and in turn passes God's demands onto his flock. If you do not believe in what the Catholic Church and the Pope preach you are not, in truth a Catholic. I found her commentary selfish and self serving. She is not interested in helping children; she is only interested in promoting the gay agenda. If she were interested in helping children, she would agree with Mitt Romney. She has fought for her rights and her beliefs. Why are her beliefs more important than those of true Catholics? It is unfair for the State, or Ms. Duddy-Burke, or any one else to dictate against the religious beliefs of others. It is unfair to expect the Catholic Church to go against its tenets and do something that the heads of the church feel is immoral. Ms. Duddy-Burke is not bound by church law. She and other gay couples can adopt elsewhere. They are not suffering for their beliefs. Yet, they would push the Catholic Church away from helping children in need in order to further their political agenda. It is against the separation of church and state for the state to regulate the Catholic Charities adoption regulations.

Mary S. McGuigan

Charlton

Dear Bay State Parent,

I don't know where you went, but I am just glad you are back! We moved to North Brookfield two years ago and I used to pick you (Bay State Parent magazine) up at The Victory Supermarket. Then, they changed over to Hannaford and you vanished. I have been looking for you in Worcester but to no avail! I just said something to a Worcester friend of mine today about you and she had no idea where to find you. Low and behold upon exiting my Hannaford, there you were! Glad you are back please don't leave me here out in the boonies, alone again! ... I love the magazine! Between discovering new places to go (Magic Wings in Deerfield) and interesting things to try (Pony Party at Rock Valley Farm in W. Brookfield) to super informative articles about parenting and a calendar of events that makes a planner like me, wild with excitement. ... I just find Today's Parent (I still call it that!) an invaluable tool! ... Keep up the good words/work!

Colleen Paradis

North Brookfield

Dear Bay State Parent,

In your April issue of Bay State Parent, on page 26, advertised for April 8, Saturday says the following: "Easter Hunt. Winslow Farm Animal Sanctuary, 37 Eddy St, Norton. 12:303 pm. Hunt for Easter eggs through the nature trail; meet the Easter Bunny; meet the animals that live at the sanctuary. Free." Based on this, I believed that the event as described above was free. That morning, I called them, and they told me it was raining there and gave me directions to get there. My daughter wanted to go anyway. So, we did. It was only after we drove down there (one-hour drive) that they informed us that there was no Easter Bunny; the egg hunt was canceled; and it would cost us $12 to see the animals.

Jennifer Sinclair

Ayer

Editor's Note: Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We know that readers depend upon the accuracy of the calendar when planning family outings. We do apologize. The cost should have read $5-$7 to visit the sanctuary. It was a mistake. We do apologize. While we could not have known that the Sanctuary was going to cancel the free egg hunt and the Easter Bunny due to weather, it is disappointing to hear about your experience. We hope you will continue to look to Bay State Parent for outings with your daughter.

Dear Bay State Parent,

As I sat at my 5-year old daughter Lovina's dance class I picked up April's edition of Bay State Parent. The first thing I saw was your "Editor's Note." I just want to say thank you! My daughter had the same surgery on March 17. This was her first week back at dance class. Like your daughter, Bella, Lovina suffered from severe obstructive apnea. She had not slept soundly through the night since birth. Her snoring rivaled that of a 500-pound drunken sailor and yes, if she dare had a cold, no one slept.

Her diagnosis came as a fluke; I was sent to an otolaryngologist for a suspected polyp on my larynx, my daughter came along with me. As the doctor was examining me, he could hear her heavy mouth breathing. He asked to take a look at her and discovered her tonsils were roughly the size of two goodsized walnuts and her adenoid gland was visible in the back of her throat (it's not supposed to be). ... The doctor informed me that this situation needed to be rectified. ... Like your daughter, Lovina also got a nasty cold a few weeks before surgery, it too settled in her chest and the cough that it produced was horrid. She cleared up two days before her surgery date. We had explained to Lovina that she would be having surgery, and that her tonsils and adenoid had to go. She was fine with it almost seemed to look forward to it. On the day of surgery we had to wake her a 4 a.m., not easy for a child who gets little to no restful sleep. We had to be at the hospital for 7:30 a.m. We got her "hospital jammies" on, put her hair in braids and off to the OR waiting area we went. Lovina was having a ball no fear, no anxiousness. I on the other hand should have been in a straight jacket.

Lovina's surgery also took all of 45 minutes. I too went back to the recovery area to be with her. We had a far easier time than you did though. Lovina did fine with the anesthesia and only got sick two times. We were allowed to take her home that evening. The recovery was long - two weeks total, but the result is so incredibly worth it. Lovina sleeps through the night, soundly though the night. She can breathe through her nose finally. I was concerned with just how much sleeping she was doing, it seemed constant. The doctor reminded me that she had a lot of sleep to catch up on.

We will have to do some speech therapy, as she never learned to speak correctly. She had always had this huge gland in the back of her nose, now there is a cavernous space and the air just resonates.

Her voice has gone from a stuffy nosed, marble mouthed type of speech to what they call hyper nasal. She makes Fran Dresher sound like an anchor for the CNN news. I don't mean to be crass, but, we are finally able to find some humor in all of this. Not to mention she is just a much more pleasant morning person now.

The doctor who did Lovina's surgery informed me, that there has been a link to children who have the adenotonsillectomy and improved attention and retention. Our daughter had already had some listening issues and was just starting "temper tantrums." Since she returned to school we have had no problems, the teachers have noticed a difference,

In closing, thank you again! It doesn't matter what the doctor's, other parents, or relatives say, choosing to put your child through surgery of any kind is incredibly stressful. The responsibility you feel is something I can't even explain. It far out weighs the "Did we send her to the right school? or Should we do dance class and soccer?" This is life and death stuff and no one can prepare you for it.

Trea McReynolds

Leominster

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