To the editor: I would like to express my appreciation to the East Penn School Board Directors for the 6-3 vote to approve the 2012-2013 Final Budget. This budget maintains the high quality of education provided by the district while keeping the tax increase at a low 1.3% (just over a $40 yearly increase for the average homeowner). It is important to understand that this budget was passed during a very difficult economic climate. Like all public schools, our district continues to feel the effects of the nearly $1 billion in state cuts from a year ago. School districts across the state are …

Editor's Note: I received the following statement via email last night regarding the fatal accident on Lower Macungie Road on Wednesday. It is published here, with the writer's permission, in its entirety. -Jennifer Marangos, Editor, Emmaus Patch I was a witness to the crash yesterday on Lower Macungie Rd... As soon as it registered in my mind what was happening in front of me, I pulled over to the side of the road and called 911. I was out of my car speaking w/ the operator looking for the name of the school as I was unfamiliar with the name of the road. And explained that it was serious …

To the editor: Sue Brown had a spot at Emmaus Farmer's Market as a vendor, so lots of people were able to see the beautiful crafts she had brought from Equador to sell, in order to buy more goods for them to keep making items. My cell phone case on a strap came from her, plus an apron.   She was a speaker at a monthly meeting of our Woman's Club of Macungie, where we were all caught up with her passion. I highly recommend having her as a speaker to help spread the word of her wonderful project. She deserves any support possible. I have high praise for Sue Brown and her work and wish everyone …

Special to Patch by Rep. Justin Simmons A new law is now in place in Pennsylvania that requires all voters to present valid photo identification at the polling place in order to cast their vote. Voters will be asked to present ID at the April 24 primary election, but identification will not be required by law until the general election in November. This important piece of legislation ensures that one person equals one vote, which is the foundation of our republic. I supported it wholeheartedly. These days, a photo ID is required to complete countless transactions – from buying beer and …

To the Editor: For years, the legislature has bamboozled voters with a simple ploy. They tell you that they haven't raised taxes, then they send mandates they won't pay for down to local school boards that are forced to raise property taxes to pay for them. Even worse, legislators then turn around and blame school boards for the problem of high property taxes. The truth is, because of this ploy, districts like East Penn now get less than 20 percent of their budgets from the state, and local taxpayers are stuck for over 80 percent of the cost, when it used to be a 50-50 split. Now that …

Shortly after moving to Emmaus in the mid-1990’s, I joined the Board of Directors of what at the time was the Emmaus Chamber of Commerce in order to learn more about the local business community and to integrate myself into it.  Back then, we were focused solely on the businesses within the Borough of Emmaus, and regionalization was not part of our agenda.  In the late 1990’s, our then Board President and President of the former East Penn Bank, Mr. Brent Peters, championed an effort to regionalize our chamber to include all five of the boroughs that comprise the East Penn School District and …

Editor’s Note: According to The Morning Call, yesterday Darius Kevin Maurer, 21, was sentenced to life in prison without parole for killing 20-year-old Donya Abdulrazzak last June in Emmaus.  To the editor: June 4th marks the one-year anniversary of the death of Donya Sinan Abdulrazzak . On this anniversary her co-workers at Weis Markets (Emmaus) want to make sure she’s remembered by the community. I’d also like to clear up a few factual errors printed in previous articles. I had the pleasure of working the late evening shifts with Donya at Weis Markets.  She was a staple on register 10. Her …