I recently went to a meeting at my son's school, Grant Middle School in Fairview Heights. The economic situation that the country is going through has hit District 110 very hard. The district has run out of money. It has to borrow money from a bank to cover the rest of the school year.

On our ballots next month, fellow residents of Fairview Heights will be asked to vote for an increase in property tax. People whose house is valued at $100,000 will be paying $8.25 a month more if this passes. You can go out for lunch and spend more than that.

If this tax does not pass, it will be very bad for our city and school district. Classes could have 36 students in them, that is if the district can even stay open. It may even be that the state comes in and puts our children in the East St. Louis School District. Also the state could divide the students up among the surrounding districts. If that happens, people will move out of the area and property values will go down even lower than they are already.

I am begging. If you live in District 110, please vote "yes" to help save our schools.

Gaila Young

Fairview Heights