Beggars, rude clerks annoy her

I have some concerns about some things that I have to get off my chest.

The first one is the safety of all these young people begging on the Boulevard every weekend for some cause or another.

I have seen, several different times, one or more of these kids almost get hit by cars or killed. Is this cause worth their lives? Are these causes even legitimate, or is this money to buy their beer for their Saturday night party? Can't someone organize a real fund-raiser for their cause if there is one? I certainly would not want my child to stand on the Boulevard like that for any reason.

Second, I have seen the same young woman at the intersection of Roosevelt Boulevard and Ryan Avenue all summer long, begging for herself. This really irritates me, because I work and I pay taxes, and she stands on my corner and collects money from good Samaritans who are too naive to know that she is there because she just doesn't want to earn a living.

People have seen her in different places in the Northeast too, and have seen her being picked up by someone in a new, expensive car. She also talks on a cell phone and leaves her fast-food trash all over the place. Isn't this against the law? Isn't this panhandling? I'm really sick of this!

Lastly, I would like to know what kind of job training is being provided in the retail stores around here. Most of the workers and cashiers act as if it is too much trouble to wait on you. They don't want to stop their personal conversations with the worker in the next lane long enough to check you out. They all seem to be mute, because if you ask them a question they may shake their head or shrug their shoulders.

Some of them even try to duck out of your way if they see you coming. Office Max and Food Basics are only two of the stores in which I have encountered problems, and I will shop elsewhere if possible. Is anyone else fed up to here about these things?

Lorraine Kollock

Lexington Park

Yo, Bustleton Bengals, what about our kids?

I live in Northeast Philly and am (now was) a member of the Bustleton Bengals organization. My children have played sports there for four years now, we have volunteered and my husband has coached. I have often heard the negative comments and reputation this organization has received from neighboring competitors, and now I understand it, as I have witnessed it firsthand.

The board of the Bustleton Bengals uses this organization and its connections to serve their own personal agendas.

Recently, the girls' travel soccer team showed up to the field on a Sunday afternoon to play a home game and found that the fields were being used for a fund-raising event.

No notification was given to the coaches about the event, nor were they asked to reschedule their game.

When board members were questioned, there was no concern for the children, coaches, parents or opposing team that were forced to forfeit the game because they did not have a playing field available.

The treasurer says, "Oh well, I am the treasurer, I will pay the ref fees."

Members of this community pay fees for their children to play for the Bustleton Bengals, and then the organization authorizes outside teams to use the fields on our time. What happened to putting the children first? Our girls practice in the dark on lower fields because someone else was permitted to use the facilities.