Some Steelworkers aren't even getting their pensions

Some Steelworkers aren't even getting their pensions
EDITOR:
This is a response to the article in last Sunday's Vindcator titled, "Seeking a New Path." I'm a former Steelworker who worked for Republic Steel, LTV, Republic Engineered Steels, and finally Republic Technologies International. I worked 9 years in Youngstown, 10 in Canton and 5 in Beaver Falls, Pa. I've made the rounds.
The people you interviewed are very lucky in one aspect. LTV, CSC, CMP, and others are getting their pensions. Because our pension fund was underfunded, the PBGC stepped in and is trying to take them over. The matter remains in court, but it doesn't sound promising. They're saying that anyone who didn't have 30 years or more will not get their pension until age 65. Personally I have 24 years ad should be entitled to a rules pension according to my contract. We had many people with 28 or 29 years who face getting nothing for all of those years.
We've tried to get help, but no one seems to care. Our international union, who should have been watching the fund, doesn't give a damn about us, maybe because we don't pay dues anymore. We've gone to the National Labor Relations Board. We've written politicians, including Congressman Ryan, but no one seems to be doing anything to help us.
So you people can at least take heart in the fact that you're getting your pension. When unemployment runs out, I'll have nothing and I am paying for health care. They can afford to rebuild Iraq but we can't get our small pensions.
JACK THOMAS
Struthers
Demolition of high schoolbrings back memories
EDITOR:
On June 25, local television stations broadcast the news that demolition of the "old" Campbell Memorial High School building was under way. As a CMHS alumnus, the images of the crumbling building saddened me, and I felt compelled to go to the site to visit my alma mater one more time.
Seeing CMHS stripped of its facade, with the setting sun peeking through huge gaping holes was not easy. The building represented many fond memories for me and for many Campbell alumni who were blessed with an excellent education received within the once-standing and sturdy walls.
I was not alone visiting the remains of the old school. Like me, many arrived with cameras to record the last hours of the noble building. Others simply drove by.
Campbell has a new high school now, and it is filled with technology that my era never knew. Future students will build their memories there, and perhaps they will someday feel compelled to come back to a place that was "home" to them.
The crumbling building is a reminder of our ever-changing world. It is also a reminder of what must never change: community support for students, educators and administrators. A school is not just a building; it is a life experience that we carry with us forever.
ANITA CARANO
Boardman