As president of the Hunt Memorial Preservation Committee, I would like to express my sincerest thanks to all who made the Hunt Fest such a success this year. A special thank you to Barthel's Farm Stand, Country Flowers and Burd's Farm Stand for their generous donation of plants and pumpkins. Also, I would like to thank the community for coming and supporting our efforts to restore the Hunt Memorial Building. Last, but certainly not least, a heartfelt thanks to my fellow members of the Hunt Memorial Preservation Board of Directors (both past and present) without whose help none of this would be possible. The Hunt building will be 100 years old in 2017. Let's hope with everyone's good will and hard work, we can have it looking its best by that day. See you in the spring.

Kathy Butler
President HMPC

The town of Crawford has budget woes. We can't afford to buy new trucks for the highway department. I guess this was unforeseen when they decided to build the new highway garage at a cost of over $2,000,000 without voter approval. I guess that they had no idea that the average ages of the trucks that maintain our roads were over 15 years old.

Let's sum it up:

1) We are in debt over $2,000,000 for the highway garage.

2) We laid off two highway employees.

3) Now we will need to borrow another $250,000 to replace two highway trucks or depend on old and possibly unreliable trucks to maintain our roads this winter.

This looks like we need a team in office who will be responsive to the voters and who will be fiscally responsible.

A E Robertson
Bloomingburg

In speaking with so many of my co-workers (all parents) about the Taconic crash, we all had our little theories as to what happened to Diane that day. I for one was sure that she found out her spouse was having an affair, and that she and Daniel fought about it at the campground. The fact she talked to brother on phone and not spouse is what all of us found very suspicious (and telling).

The one horrible thing we all could not fathom, however, is that she was willing to disregard her own children and nieces's lives, not just her own, in causing death and destruction. The Hances seemed better off financially than the Schulers, but then why did only the Schulers always take the 5 kids camping? Even if they loved that hobby, I do not think I would let my sister be stuck with my kids and hers (ages 8 and younger!), and just stay home with my own husband..I would want to at least take turns, or go up to the campsite with them, to help out every other time..Sounds as if the Hances got to have their "couple time" while the Schulers did not.

Maybe that was another problem. I think Dan Schuler's praise of his wife may actually be true: "Diane was the perfect mom and wife", but then she decided that day in July, not to be that person anymore. Maybe it was too much pressure, and she resented having to be all things to all people in her life.

Another interesting thing about that abscessed tooth: one of my friends is a dentist, and one time we talked about the relationship between depression and dental health. He told me that sometimes, people who are suffering from depression, especially the ones who seem "perfect" and juggle family, career, etc. often try to hide this "imperfection" by concentrating on helping others, while neglecting themselves, including their dental care.

So busy caring for the kids. spouse, etc. she kept putting off going to the dentist to have it taken care of. I don't think the abscessed tooth was a cause of her physical state at time of the crash..rather it was a symptom of a great caretaker and doer, who needed someone to care for and do for HER for a change.

I also read part of the coroner's report published after the crash: this woman was never a thin person (judging by the wedding pictures), but at the time of the crash, she was over 200 lbs, and only about 5'1'' in height. This was not a healthy happy go lucky woman. I think Daniel is just feeling guilty..not only about the victims, but that he did not see (or want to see) that his wife was in deep trouble, and he failed to help her before this tragedy occurred.

Thank you for a very insightful article, it gave me some different things to think about.

Kathleen Beani
Pennsylvania