To the editor,

I just want to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Grinch (Terrence) Corrigan for his absolutely uncalled-for attempt to discredit a 20-plus year charity that is enjoyed by hundreds of locals and has helped to deliver a happier Christmas to literally thousands of needy children in Middle Tennessee.

I am not a Times-Gazette subscriber, but I do make a point of picking up a paper each publishing day. Many times there are particular local events that I am interested in, and the Highway 41 Toy Convoy was one of those events, as my husband owns a Classic, not “elderly” (Mr. Corrigan’s words) car. For the last several years, he has participated in the event as have many of his friends. To my dismay, the article never focused once on the real purpose of the event. Instead, we were treated to a lecture on the law of the use of a vintage, out-of-commission firetruck that had a “political” sign on it, even printing a ridiculous copy of the law on the front page. I will go out on a limb and say that Mr. Corrigan is probably the only person in the world that cared, and the only one who complained. I guess that is because everyone there except for him was, as he put it, too “arrogant or ignorant” to realize that fact, since they were all concerned more with the reason for the event than in the fire truck that carried Santa Claus.

Then comes the lecture from Mr. Corrigan on mask wearing. Mr. Corrigan, there is no law that says masks MUST be worn in Bedford County. These event goers are free individuals with the right to wear or not wear a mask as they see fit. It is not your call!! This was an outdoor event, and no one was forced to be there. It was each individual’s prerogative to either wear a mask or not. It is called free will, and whether it is irresponsible or not, everyone has the right to their opinion. Each person had the right to make their own choice to be there or to leave if they felt fearful, as did you. Personally, I give people the benefit of being intelligent enough to make their own decisions.

Now, today in the Sunday edition of the newspaper, the real story evolves. It is obvious that Mr. Corrigan’s main problem is with the politics of the “Grand Marshall,” Cathy Hinners. I, frankly, had never heard of Ms. Hinners until now. I researched her and found that she is a retired New York police officer who has worked with the US Homeland Security, and is very vocal in her writings on Islam in America. The theme of this event was, however, according to all the advertisements, a tribute to Law Enforcement officers. Ms. Hinners was representative of police officers, and, to my knowledge, did not mention her other political leanings. Mr. Corrigan, did you even stay around to critique anything she had to say?

Mr. Corrigan did say one thing correctly in his article on Sunday. He said that he should have kept his views for an opinion page. He is absolutely right. He succeeded in turning a feel-good Christmas event into another depressing, politically correct, self-righteous hit job.

In conclusion, a big thank you to Katy Ishee and the people who donated so generously to this good cause. Also, I would request, that you please assign the next charity story to someone less pretentious who will simply cover the event. The kids and the public deserve better.

Finally, as an aside to Mr. Corrigan, taqiyyah, is one of the accepted spellings of the word, and the definition is much more expansive than you cited. If you would like to continue your research, I would be happy to send you the link where I researched it.

Jeweline Segroves,

Shelbyville