Letters: Rally for Life Sunday, fire department's mobile integrated health

The Herald-Times

Rally for Life on Jan. 21

Christian Citizens for Life will hold the annual Rally for Life on Sunday, Jan. 21, at 2 p.m. at the Monroe County Courthouse.

This is an important event for our community, and I encourage people to attend and show that there are people in Bloomington and Monroe County who still value life. While we are thankful that the Indiana state Legislature passed a ban on most surgical abortions, there is more work to be done.

To paraphrase Abraham Lincoln, this nation cannot continue half allowing the slaughter of the innocent and half protecting basic human rights. The repeal of Roe v. Wade was only the first step. We cannot stop until life is protected in all 50 states, and the Fourteenth Amendment's promise of equal protection of the law extends to all innocent human life, from fertilization to natural death.

The culture of death is still on the march. The Bloomington City Council approved over $100,000 to pay for women to travel out of state for abortions, a wicked abuse of their authority and a betrayal of the trust they have been given with our tax dollars. The state Legislature needs to step in and stop this.

Local churches will be gathering diapers to donate to Hannah House and Women’s Care Center. You can also bring diapers to the rally, and our volunteers will deliver them.

Scott Tibbs, Bloomington

New 'kid on the block' in Bloomington

Once again, the Bloomington Fire Department held a successful food drive during the month of December, exhibiting not only their compassion, but also their generosity in helping to feed hungry people in our community. Their donations were plentiful and varied. Thank you BFD!

But that’s not all! BFD tagged each piece of food with a Mobile Integrated Health sticker.

MIH is new to Monroe County. Being a sub-department of BFD, MIH has been trained (all are EMTs) to respond to non fire-related 911 calls, such as lift calls when someone has fallen and can’t get up. They often find the individual has additional needs at home that go beyond the initial call like identifying trip hazards in their environment or social/mental health needs. Other services provided are:

Hospital dismissal/post discharge follow-ups
Post-response follow-ups for certain emergencies (such as diabetic or overdose)
Chronic disease management
Substance abuse mitigation
Mental illness mitigation
Elderly management programs
Immunization/vaccination initiatives

And it’s free to the clients.

Help spread the word about these valuable services. For more information, go to https://bloomington.in.gov/success/2023/10/03/5742; Shelby Wood, community care coordinator, shelby.wood@bloomington.in.gov and 812-369-1171.

Mary Blizzard, Bloomington

Thank you to CBU workers

I wanted to start the New Year with a compliment to the hard workers at City of Bloomington Utilities. They did work on our street during the fall of 2023 and into the winter, which required digging in our yards.

They took care to remove a portion of the top layer of our yard and place it on a tarp. When they completed their job, they replaced everything — even stones — and we could barely tell they were there. They were polite and informative the entire time. Thank you CBU for your excellent work.

Tammy Minger, Bloomington