Local & Statewide News

Dear Mr. President

Help us tell the story of the Miami Valley by writing a letter to the President and sending it to WYSO.Your letter can be written, or recorded for audio or video. WYSO will collect the letters for a special storytelling series this spring.Your letter may be featured on the air! Here's how to participate:Write a letter: No more than 300 words - THEN - follow these steps:Record yourself in audio or video reading your letter out loudSend us the recording. Length: no longer than 90-secondsSend us a selfie/portrait of yourself holding your letterPlease let us know if you need help recording your letterWe want to hear from you, your family, your friends and your neighbors. Email your letter to wyso@wyso.org. A producer may contact you for more information.

Dear Mr. President: Let's Build Bridges Of Understanding

WYSO | By Karen M.R. Townsend

Published March 28, 2017 at 2:05 PM EDT

Dear Mr. President,

My name is Dr. Karen M.R. Townsend and I wanted to take this opportunity to reach out to you.

The God I serve loves ALL. I am a CHRISTIAN. And my savior--Jesus Christ--was a JEWISH carpenter. While I often have to "remember" to pray ONCE a day, many of my MUSLIM brothers and sisters pray FIVE times a day.

While the state of IMMIGRATION in our country is a top story on the news, unless YOU are a NATIVE AMERICAN, then YOU TOO are an IMMIGRANT.

I may "look" BLACK to you, but my DNA also includes my IRISH great, great grandfather. (Feel free to kiss me on St. Patick's Day!)

My circle of friends includes a number of HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL people. Some of these people that I know--and LOVE--are gay, have piercings and tattoos, don't speak English fluently, have been incarcerated and have struggled with substance abuse.

What is the point of this rant?

I just remembered something I learned in Sunday School at Eastview Baptist Church in Madisonville, KY:

"Jesus loves the little children. All the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white. They are precious in His sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world."

Instead of building WALLS, that divide us, let's build BRIDGES of understanding. Make American LOVE Again!

Karen M.R. Townsend, Ph.D.

February 18, 2017

Dear Mr. President asks what you want to say about your community, and what you want President Donald Trump to know about the Miami Valley. Submit your own letter by emailing it to wyso@wyso.org.