Re: the Dec. 13 letter to the editor “Even less help for those who need it the most.”
When I was 8, mom took all four of us kids and we moved from Southern California to up-state New York. All we had was the clothes in our suitcases. We relied on mom’s family for help. It took several years, but the welfare system helped her find a job for minimum wage. Less than $2 an hour.
Neither my siblings nor I turned to drugs or crime in those years. My older brother was in the Navy, finished college and is now retired and living in Massachusetts. My sister married, raised a family, and worked. She is now retired and living here in Tucson. My younger brother is working in Massachusetts and will retire in a few years. Me? I’m retired after over 20 years in the Air Force and working in the civilian market. None of us are rich, but we have comfortable lives.
All of these opportunities are available to today’s young people. Sometimes, all they need is to be shown which way to go. No one is destined to be poor for life!
Steven Barker
East side
