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To the Editor:
I want to address the Carter County Budget Committee concerning its recommendation to eliminate not-for-profit organizations from the 2023-24 county budget. I realize I do not have the benefit of your many hours of discussions, striving to arrive at a budget that will satisfy the taxpayers of Carter County, who are your employers. I believe it is extremely short-sighted to tell the volunteers of these organizations who donate their time, resources and expertise that their volunteerism doesn’t matter. These volunteers strive to our fellow citizens who are not able to provide for themselves.
As a committee you have recommended that the volunteer services such as food distribution, trash pickup efforts to keep our community clean and beautiful, drivers to deliver meals on wheels, projects to provide backpacks and warm clothing for children along with many other efforts to serve the under-served will be diminished or in some cases could be eliminated.
I hope you take these words from an individual volunteer, who has a track record in helping the disadvantaged. From experience, it is extremely difficult to convince people to volunteer in today’s society. So why aggravate the situation by in essence telling those that do volunteer that they have no support for the good that they accomplish.
In my opinion the 23 percent of our citizens who are disadvantaged, for whatever reason, are being told that the hope they need is absent and that help is not on the way.

Charles D. VonCannon
Central Community