Tarrant County Elections Department, Southwest Airlines, Texas Republicans

Kudos to elections department

Imagine an athlete so accomplished that when she runs a marathon along the banks of the Trinity River every footstep falls exactly in the same footprints from her previous 10 runs. Or imagine a bull rider who steps gently off his never-before-ridden bull with a quiet bow to the spectators at Will Rogers in perfect duplication of his rides from several years.

As far-fetched as these examples sound, this caliber of performance is precisely what the unsung heroes at Tarrant County Elections Department accomplish here in North Texas. Reading the Star-Telegram’s coverage of Tuesday’s election reminds me that most nations are unable to run a secure, confident-in-the-results election. Yet Tarrant County’s incredible elections department team has once again presented a flawlessly run election with hardly a ripple on the surface of the public’s notice. Tarrant County can indeed be proud of our very own homegrown heroes — the employees of Tarrant County Elections Department.

— John Dilbeck, Fort Worth

Disrespectful attitude

I read with dismay and disappointment Dr. Bruce Jacobson’s Nov. 2 letter ("Is this discrimination?") claiming that private businesses have the right to a dress code.

Yes, private businesses have such rights. But to compare the wearing of an Islamic head scarf, a religious item that holds such importance and meaning to Muslims, to a man wearing a leather jacket and red bandanna because he loves motorcycles shows a blatant lack of sensitivity.

This woman’s head scarf is not worn as a fashion statement, nor is it her "individual idiosyncrasy." Rather, it is a profound expression of her faith, and to suggest otherwise is offensive. To belittle someone’s desire to wear an item that has for centuries been such an integral part of her religion, culture and history is nothing less than disrespectful.

— Sheri Allen, Fort Worth

Fighting hunger

We applaud Dave and Carole Bernard for their concern and commitment to serving the hungry. (See: Letters, "Can’t leftovers be shared?" Nov. 2)

Tarrant Area Food Bank, in collaboration with Kroger, Walmart, Sam’s, Albertsons and Central Market, picks up unsold perishable product at stores for use in prepared meals. The Store Donation Program allows meat products, deli, some produce and bread product to be used for hunger relief rather than be sent to the dumpster. In addition, many of our partner agencies directly access stores for the same purpose.

While not universal in scope, the program allows us to rescue in excess of 200,000 pounds of food per month. Some of it is distributed through pantries. Our Community Kitchen turns some of it food into more than 6,500 prepared and frozen meals per month.

Some foods are less appropriate for these programs because of their rapid deterioration once the sell-by date has passed, and it will continue to be discarded. Although legislation does exist to protect commercial donors from liability, our main concern is food safety and the well-being of clients.

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