Firefighters help out in Haiti; helping our cash-strapped recreation centers; medical marijuana

Praise for firefighters

Re “A pair’s little victories in Haiti,” Column One, Feb. 20

As a Los Angeles firefighter of over 30 years, now retired, I can vouch that this story captured the spirit, the heart and the compassion of all firefighters more than anything I have seen or heard since a survivor at the twin towers remarked that “we were fighting to get out, and the firefighters were fighting to get in.”

I pray that the citizens and politicians of Los Angeles, in cutting budgets, will not be responsible for quelling these noble qualities in our hero firefighters.

Hal Burkhart
Irvine

Thank you for printing the story of the two California firefighters doing what they can to help those in desperate need after the earthquake in Haiti.

They showed not the harsh and divisive voice of those who screamed so hatefully at the town hall meetings last summer, but America’s loving and generous heart.

It is people like Jim Clark and Matt Cobb who give me hope for a better future for my beloved country.

Gerda Fadden
Thousand Oaks

Prevention efforts pay off

Re “Births to teens on the decline,” Feb. 23

Comprehensive teen-pregnancy prevention efforts that include access to age-appropriate, medically accurate sex education; community-based provision of clinical exams, pap testing, STD and HIV testing and treatment, and birth-control methods; and outreach to young women and men have resulted in the significant decrease in births to teenage mothers in California.

These programs are an investment in the well-being of our communities. California is a leader in the implementation of family planning programs. These data prove that it is earning huge returns.

Margie Fites Seigle
Los Angeles

The writer is president and chief executive of the California Family Health Council, which provides family planning education and services.

Locked up but not looked after

Re “Youths held by county were abused,” Feb. 21

We have failed our children. Most of the youth coming into the delinquency system have been victims of neglect and other forms of abuse, and when they act out of their pain, we lock them up and perpetuate the cycle of abuse.

I feel so sad for the kids in this story and the thousands of others who continue to suffer because of society’s overuse of incarceration. It matters very little if our jails were made of gold and staffed with wonderful people if we are sentencing children to die in prison.

I hope your article helps to open eyes, minds and hearts.

Javier Stauring
Los Angeles
The writer is a juvenile hall chaplain and policy director of Faith Communities for Families and Children, a child welfare organization.

Discrediting line probation officers because of the acts of a few is one-dimensional and minimizes the outstanding effort of many. Those who work with society’s most challenging young people do so because of a belief that they can make a positive difference.

Educators and probation staff should not be the focal point of blame for the policy fiascoes and dysfunctional leadership of elected and appointed county and state administrations.

The real culprits are the “leaders” who have failed to provide adequate funding for education, proper training for probation officers and up-to-date facilities for incarcerated youth. We must move the conversation forward to create real change in the juvenile justice system.

Mark M. Lewis
Norwalk
The writer is president of the Los Angeles County Education Assn., a teachers union.

Opportunities for all in L.A.

Re “Havens worth protecting,” Column, Feb. 21

Beijing spent $43 billion on its Summer Olympic Games. Vancouver is spending more than

$5 billion on the Winter Olympics. Corporations sponsor elite athletes who compete in the Olympics and other world sporting events.

Yet we learn from Steve Lopez that neighborhood recreation centers are being shut down because of a lack of money.

I challenge Nike and other corporations to sponsor local recreation centers that serve all income levels of children in our communities and not just those athletes who were blessed with the resources to attain the elite level.

Our children are our future. Let’s provide the support all of them need to create the healthy communities of our future.

Charity Gourley
Santa Barbara

As a member of the board of directors of the Los Angeles Parks Foundation, I was almost relieved to see Lopez’s column. Those of us who work with the Department of Recreation and Parks are all too aware of the cutbacks in our parks at a time when our community needs them the most.

The good news is that we recently devised a way that the community can help. Our new Los Angeles Parks Foundation is a 501(c)(3), which means the public can make tax-deductible donations to help any or all of our parks.

We recognize that the community model of the future has to be a public-private relationship. Los Angeles has embraced the idea, and we already have some generous benefactors who are sponsoring benches, paths, swim programs and even dog parks.

Our aim is to raise funds to improve park facilities, enhance park environments and preserve and restore historic elements in our city parks. It is a better solution than just lamenting budget cuts.

Candy Spelling
Los Angeles

Marijuana? We’ve spoken

Re “Position on pot is a bit hazy,” Editorial, Feb. 22

The people of California made clear where they stand on marijuana when they voted for the Compassionate Use Act in 1996, making California the first state to legalize the drug for medical use.

It has taken too long to figure out how to implement this law. Money is being wasted raiding legal dispensaries and incarcerating people -- money that would be put to better use funding education in our state.

The Drug Enforcement Administration needs to support the people on this issue -- people who voted for the legal and safe dispensation of medical marijuana.

Cali Lopez
Chino Hills

Michele Leonhart, who has been nominated to head the Drug Enforcement Administration, has hopefully learned a thing or two after helping to waste billions of taxpayer dollars, over many years, pointlessly chasing pot users and ruining countless lives.

Based on public statements, I had hoped President Obama saw the situation more clearly, and Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. too. But if it is this administration’s intention to continue the “war on drugs” as ignorantly as previous administrations did, then one term will be enough for this group.

William Bergmann
Hollywood

Clarity on camellias

Re “A camellia is a camellia . . . ,” Feb. 21

As a camellia enthusiast, I appreciate any coverage of this exceptional plant. However, camellias are not thirsty “water hogs,” as The Times suggests.

They require less water than roses. In fact, I’ve seen camellias thrive in yards of abandoned homes. No one should know this better than the executive director of Descanso Gardens.

And finally, I can’t see how any article can be written about camellias in Los Angeles without mention of Nuccio’s Nurseries in Altadena. We are incredibly fortunate to have the foremost growers of camellias in the world right here in our backyard.

Mike Hynes
Altadena

Have a showing in Mexico

Re “A complex border tragedy,” Column, Feb. 22

Regarding the new documentary, “The 800-Mile Wall,” John Carlos Frey definitely needs to make his film about the deaths of migrants -- so it can be viewed in Mexico.

Here is a country so lame its people are dying to get out. Here is a country that doesn’t take care of its own and expects another country to roll out the red carpet and take in all this mass poverty at taxpayer expense.

Reform is definitely long overdue in Mexico, along with any shame this film is trying to produce.

Nora Virrey
Bakersfield