Edgemere care is excellent

Re: “Families wait for Edgemere refunds — Some nervous pricey deposits won’t be returned,” Sunday news story.

My parents moved to Edgemere in 2016. My father passed away in 2020 and received the most amazing care. My mother continues to live there and thoroughly enjoys it. My siblings and I could not have picked a better place for them to spend their golden years.

I have been reading the one-sided articles by Natalie Walters. She has been focusing on only a few families’ experiences.

My parents paid a premium deposit and signed a contract, which stated that their heirs would receive 90% of the deposit after the unit was sold. We all understood that it might be a while before we would see that money. My parents’ care and well-being are more important to me than money.

Because of a global pandemic, many units have been empty since folks were fearful about living in a community setting. This is changing and units are starting to sell again since Edgemere is one of the premiere retirement communities.

I just wonder why this negative focus since many senior communities are having this same problem?

Alexandra Moore, Dallas/Preston Hollow

Fight the rise in TB deaths

World Tuberculosis Day is today, March 24. It marks the day in 1882 when Dr. Robert Koch announced that he had discovered the bacterium that causes tuberculosis. This year it will be an especially sad day. For the first time in decades, the number of TB deaths has increased. TB is an epidemic in many poor countries, but because we have mostly eliminated it here, it is not on our radar. Yet, it kills 1.5 million a year worldwide.

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has saved more than 44 million lives over the last 20 years. The Global Fund built health systems around the world that are being used to fight COVID-19 and those three infectious diseases of poverty. The Global Fund has a three-year plan to save 20 million lives, cut the death rate from HIV, TB and malaria by 64%, and strengthen systems for health to build a healthier, more equitable world.

The United States has been the leader in supporting the work of the Global Fund by contributing a third of the funding required. Please contact your member of Congress and your senators and request $2 billion for the Global Fund in the 2023 budget.

Margaret Smith, Dallas/Turtle Creek

Architecture worth rewarding

Re: “Prize worthy,” Sunday Arts & Life Distractions.

I see that the Pritzker Prize in Architecture for 2022 goes to Diébédo Francis Kéré from Burkina Faso. Finally, I see a style of architecture that could actually be sustainable for the future of mankind.

Susan Garza, Richardson

Living in Bishop Arts was great

Re: “Blame zoning in Bishop Arts bulldozing — A block of affordable housing is about to be demolished,” by Sharon Grigsby, Sunday Metro column.

Great column.

My wife and I lived there in one of the duplexes for several years. It was a great place to be!

My wife, Sylvia, and I would sit on the porch, and she would hand out free roses to the women going to and from Bishop Arts. She would tell them she was celebrating “Rose Day,” which was any day she decided to do this.

Also, we really appreciated the McDonald family. They were great landlords.

Luis Salcedo, Mansfield

About the right and left

Re: “Voter apathy strikes again in Texas — Low turnout assures a polarized political environment in which little gets done,” by J. Peter Kline, Saturday Opinion.

What did you expect? With the new Texas voter rules, a lot fewer people will be able to vote! Just look at the 23,000 mail-in votes that were rejected.

Also in this column, the author discusses “Extremists on both the left and the right have little interest in governing for the common good.” Not so. On the right, we have Gov. Greg Abbott, Attorney General Ken Paxton and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, etc. On the left, we have who? I’d like to know.

Sandy Elkins, Plano

Ballot audit needed for fixes

Re: “Nearly 23,000 mail votes rejected — ‘Something seriously wrong’ with how Texas is handling new voting law, expert says,” March 17 Metro & Business story.

Most of the rejected ballots, according to state and county election officials, failed to adhere to the new identification requirements.

Were the new instructions too confusing? Was there incorrect data in the system? Or could it be smoking-gun evidence of attempted fraud?

This is why an audit is needed. Examination of ballot envelopes and rolls, with voter interviews, can determine what needs to be fixed.

Ken Ashby, Dallas

Double-check your ballots

Re: “...or suppressing ballots?” by Garrison Potts, Monday Letters.

Potts writes, “Thousands of mail-in ballots are being rejected across the state.” The majority of these are being rejected because of errors or incomplete applications. How difficult is it to follow instructions on the form? How difficult is it to double-check that application is complete and accurate? Personal responsibility counts for a lot, especially in an election!

John Eggen, Wilmer

Easier to buy gun than vote

Recent headlines: 10 shot, several injured at party; 4 wounded in shooting in Austin; 4 teens shot, one killed at party; 55-year-old man fatally shot.

These four headlines appeared in the first six pages of Monday’s Metro section. It is easier to buy a gun in Texas than it is to vote. These headlines are a reflection of that fact.

Scott Kimball, McKinney