Kudos to Gov. Ricketts, Shriners on 'Burn Awareness'

Dear Editor,

Having family in McCook, Cambridge, Lincoln, Omaha, and elsewhere in Nebraska, I read the article in the McCook Gazette titled “Safety Equipment” (Feb. 2 issue).

That article focused on ‘signs’ helping adults avert tragedies. However, with children, accidents such as accidental fires can cause injury or death all year long.

It could be cases of burns from house fires or cooking grease splashing on a child’s skin, or burns from a hot muffler on a lawn mower on a summer’s day … or any other accident.

Burns know no holiday. I am very pleased that on Monday, Feb. 5, Governor Ricketts at the State Capitol building in Lincoln, with the leaders of the various Shriners Centers in Nebraska signed a Governor’s Proclamation marking “Burn Awareness.”

The Shriners are well known for helping badly Burned Children and restoring them to productive lives. My late dad, Bill Marples was a Shriner, as were several of his cousins in Nebraska.

I even joined myself, so I know that these good men do good charitable endeavors free of charge to the families of crippled and burned kids.

Every Shriner must join the fraternal order of the Masonic Lodge to join and retain membership.

I was especially pleased that Gov. Ricketts posed for photographs and he also made the astute comment: “We appreciate the great work you do to help the health of our young people and of course, what would a parade be without the Shriners, right?” The crowd chuckled with approval.

Sincerely,

James A. Marples,

Longview, Texas