Though the Allegan County Health Department officially lifted its mask mandate Oct. 1, a group of about two dozen parents Monday night told the Wayland Board of Education they want things to stay the way they are now.
One parent, Leslie VanVliet, Monday evening presented statistics that show the rate of Covid-19 cases in schools has been virtually the same since the mask order was rescinded.
“It’s obvious the masks aren’t doing anything (to stop virus spread),” she concluded.
Her daughter, Lelah, complained about the effects of the masks and insisted, “We should have a choice on what we put on our faces.”
Pamela Lawrence said since the order was lifted, most students have shed the masks, saying, “That means a majority of parents don’t want them (mask mandates).”
Amanda Wurm warned, “Don’t take this choice away from parents… Our kids are finally able to focus on what school is all about.”
Anthony Gutierrez said, “Our underlying purpose is to keep kids in school… the county is making a choice, now it’s up to us.”
Supt. Dr. Christina Hinds told board members the Allegan County Health Department is considering hiring “health resource advocates” to better handle quarantine situations, which she hopes will better serve families.
She said the county is proposing to have such an HRA serve both the Wayland and Hopkins school districts to get in touch with parents and families of students who have been quarantined.
“We don’t have the resources to investigate cases like the health department does,” Hinds explained.
Board Trustee Becky Hohnke added, “Our community is having a hard time dealing with quartantining. It’s confusing.”
The superintendent said she hopes to have more information about HRAs next month.
In other business at Monday evening’s work session, the board agreed to an emergency purchase of a new scoreboard for the swimming program.
Hinds said the old one has fallen into an irreparable state.
Assistant Supt. for Grounds and Finance Patricia Velie arranged to buy a new unit for $8,945 now, which recommended because she didn’t feel the district should wait at least two weeks in order to seek and get bids.
Doesn’t Wayland schools lead the county in Covid cases?
I’ll bet they aren’t vaccinated either. Several vaccines are mandated by the state already.
I guess they aren’t smart enough to realize why there aren’t many cases of measles or chickenpox or pertussis.
Maybe they are not vaccinated because some Good Parents do not wish for their children to be a Guinea pig. Or in Tony Faucis world perhaps a poor suffering beagle. In almost all cases covid is nothing for children, thus why use a shot that has absolutely no long term studies, it only been out for a year. Let’s see what the 5 year mark brings for side effects.
I’d say a decade is more than enough time to study the base for the vaccine, the technology we have now, is so much further advanced then say 50 years ago when we sent man to the moon, personally it’s been a huge relief getting the vaccine and booster, weird thing is republicans whine about loosing their freedoms by getting the shot,
When I got vaccinated I gained my freedom back,,
And piece of mind !
How many of the “Good Parents” of Allegan County would be willing to enter all their children into a lottery. If their child’s number comes up their child dies or becomes a COVID Long Hauler with long term residual effects like heart damage.
If they’re “lucky” with their child that gets COVID, gets hospitalized and is saved after time in an ICU along with weeks on a ventilator their child gets all the long term outcomes that go along being on a ventilator. Perhaps a lung transplant in their future? Expensive but that’s when you exhaust insurance just declare medical bankruptcy.
Did these same concerned parents show up at Pre-COVID school board meetings questioning suggested tuberculosis, measles, small pox and polio vaccines for their children?
Did their parents or grandparents refuse to have their children receive polio vaccines in the name of questioning science and the government? Did they grow up with the daily routine of hearing the clanging of braces border to walk?
I’m happy my children’s health team never used the sage advice of wait for 5 years for the long term studies when faced with a virus that’s proven to kill. Happy they didn’t equate children with Guinea pigs either. According to NBC news there have been 276 deaths of children ages 5-11. There are approximately 28.2M children in the US who are 11 or under.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/data-shows-more-children-are-getting-sick-dying-covid-n1281616
Play the lottery with your child’s health. Odds of winning 1 in 292,000,000 for Powerball.
Couch…. you hit the nail on the head. Bravo. You steadfastly reinforced my point, why risk it with a experimental shot. As stated and proven the likelihood of children having a profound issue with covid is next to none. The vaccine….some with swelling of the heart, anaphylaxis and more. Sadly, I think many parents care more about their own health and thus willing to roll the bones or their children’s. Sacrificing the child’s health for the parents precived security. Damn sad indeed. Damn sad. But we should not be shocked.
It all boils down to this:
Parents are responsible for their children.
The vaccine has no long term studies concerning after effects in vaccinating young children.
It is about freedom and liberty vs. coercion and control. Americans prefer the former, not the latter. At least they used to.
You don’t get to boil down all the skill, experience and knowledge that health and safety professionals have attained and conveyed, cherry picking what you determine to be of medical value for the whole of society. You can take the manipulated statistics and opinions of political influences and apply them to your own life; you do not get to assert your understanding onto the whole of the citizenry. Your opinion does not determine what all Americans prefer past, present or future. I find it highly ironic the way you trample haphazardly on others with that moniker.
Baloney, To whom are you referring to as you?
Mr. Baloney,
You, sir, make my point in spades. Not all of us are sheep. You, evidently, prefer to be one. Baaaa!
Mr Baloney,
With all due respect, please reread what you have written and then apply it to your own writings concerning this matter.
Exactly the type of responses expected.
https://youtu.be/pOLmD_WVY-E
Mr. Baloney,
According to your thought process, we should shut the hell up and get the shot, even for children 5-12.
“Experts” like your beloved Fauci have spewed so much misinformation and downright lies, yet you blindly acquiesce to their demands and instructions.
Do you realize it has been determined that Fauci and cohorts have given large sums of cash to the Wuhan Lab where “gain of function” research was performed and the virus originated? And Fauci says they didn’t use those funds to finance the virus… why? Because he trusts them not to lie! Hey Fauci,
THEY ARE COMMUNISTS!
Your trust in some government officials borders on the absurd.
Sir,
You may have been much too direct in your statements for some of the Red Diaper Doper Babies, as well as Snowflakes.
David,
The Red Diaper Doper Babies and Snowflakes are the first to proclaim “Better Red Than Dead”,
and live on their knees subservient to government officials. They are great examples of what Americans despise.
Sir,
Thanks.
Damn right. My Father taught me well on the communist actions in the 60’s and the examples displayed in Vietnam. God knows, we must teach the children what these Vermon do and believe.