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He has community interest at heart

| December 30, 2004 12:00 AM

Editor,

I moved here on April 6, 1984 with my wife and my daughter. First I worked in the mountains cutting wood for two years then went to a local farm and worked for an additional two years. I was then hired part-time for the City and my wife and I had another daughter. The next year I was able to go fulltime with the City of Polson.

In June 1990, my wife returned to California and my father took ill and was dying. I had to go and make things right with him, and I was gone two and a half years. My father died and my wife remained in California and I returned with my two kids.

Luckily I got back on with the City, only this time I was a single parent raising two little girls alone. But I wasn't really alone, I had a whole community helping me, a list of names too long to print. The city was lenient enough and worked with me so I could tend to my girls.

The ladies in the office were a great help in guiding the girls after school and during the summer when I was too busy to come to the phone. The girls knew they had to listen to them. I didn't make much money and with no child support it was tough on my family.

This great community knew and put out their arms. The banks worked with me and lawyers helped me through the divorce and custody of my girls. Local merchants let me have store credit to help get by. The food bank and the WIC program, hospitals, doctors and dentists let me make payments.

I wish I could use names but nowadays I would be incriminated. I hope you know who you all are. For this, I am indebted to you all.

Polson is changing, for better or worse, I don't know. Some say yes, some say no. I myself have a personal obligation to this city and community. No matter what anybody thinks, I have the best interest of the City of Polson as the priority.

What I do, whom I do it with, the City of Polson and its future come first. Polson is growing and we are feeling the pain, but we cannot stop it. I want to do whatever is in my power to do the best and to make sure that it is done the best I know how.

Thanks and I wish all of Polson a Happy New Year.

Tony Porrazzo

Polson