Dear Editor:
A vast improvement over last year, Student Council finally looks like an organized group that could do something for the students. The president, Larry Portman, seems to have complete control over the group.

Student Council, in my eyes, has two main functions. One is to coordinate student activities for the students, and the second is for the representatives to learn leadership and responsibility.

It would seem to the unaccustomed eye that there is no difference this year than last year. This is unjustified. Organization is the word by which a group is controlled. This is the difference between the council of this year and councils of years past.

In years past, it took Student Council the first three months to try to organize and the next three to try to figure out what had to be done and when.

The same students always did the work before. It was always the same faces going back and forth over the same details. This year there are different faces doing the jobs. New faces are learning how a job gets done and how much work is involved.

I extend my congratulations to Larry Portman, Amy Robertson, Jerry Palarz, Lynne Stevens, and to all the members of Student Council for finally making Student Council into an organization that could help the students rather than hinder them.

Mike Fairhead


Dear Editor:
The younger generation hears the "oldsters" complain about them. They claim we are senseless and useless. I happen to be a member. And I agree with them to a certain extent.

Whatever happened to manners? Have they gone out of style like everything else? I can count the times on both hands I've sat during lunch hour, people will wrench chairs out from under other people to have them. Everyone feels that they are the one and only important person.

Is it so hard to hold a door open for an overloaded person? Is it much trouble to help pick up belongings someone else knocked down? Is it too hard to say "please" and "thank you" instead of "gimme" and other trite words?

Life is a give and take situation. People must learn to live together. Wouldn't it be easier to show a little courtesy instead of our usual way? It doesn't take much, only a few moments, and it shows how you were taught. It helps rather than hurts you.

Diane Pistolis


Dear Editor:
I would like to commend all those who worked so hard to make Homecoming a success. I would like to, but I can't.

Homecoming is an event looked forward to by most students, and especially those selected to the Homecoming court. It is a time when the students can express their school spirit, reminisce on the past, and project into the future, a time for the students to choose their queen. Homecoming is an event to look back upon with pleasant memories. I admit I'll have memories of my last Homecoming at Maine West, but not pleasant ones.

It was totally unfair that an "unofficial" leak broke out during ballot counting, giving any student with at least one ear and a brain a "good idea" of who had been chosen as queen. This was a mishap that cannot be corrected, but should be carefully considered the next time. My other complaint deals with the crowning ceremony. It turned out to be no more than just an elaborate pep assembly because, at the last minute, someone felt that it would be too much trouble to black out the gym, as planned. The crowning ceremony took place with about as much atmosphere as a basketball half‑time show.

After hearing all the good sides about Homecoming, I was reluctant to write this article. I am sorry if this letter caused anyone the slightest grief or embarrassment. I will be more sorry if next year's planners do not learn from this year's mistakes.

Brian Ward