HAYDEN: Vote 'yes' for safety

I support the levy request for four new officers so Hayden can have 24/7 police coverage — 3.5 officers is not enough to cover 15,000 people. Especially, if the levy increase is cheaper than my Netflix subscription.

I feel that maybe council member Roetter doesn’t understand the importance of safety. Here’s a reason, Councilman, why it is important to me.

Recently, I was talking to my 9-year-old daughter who wanted to walk home from school, however was told about a “gold car” that was trying to pick kids up on the street a couple blocks from our house. I told her that she was safe. She had a hard time going to sleep that night thinking that the people in the gold car would come into her room and steal her in the middle of the night.

I talked with her about keeping herself safe, however as a city there is more that we can do besides talk about safety. We have a duty to make our city safer. When we are down a deputy and have no one to take his place, nor do we have 24/7 police coverage, our safety suffers.

I am proud to be a citizen of Hayden, but safety has to become a priority for us. I support the increase for the safety of my kids. I want them to feel safe walking home from school knowing that someone is looking out for them. I cannot put a price on peace of mind.

DARBYE VANIMAN

Hayden