These are just a few of the questions area residents will have answered at the Concerned Citizens of Burlington monthly meeting at 6:30 p.

Wednesday, October 27, 1999

These are just a few of the questions area residents will have answered at the Concerned Citizens of Burlington monthly meeting at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Burlington United Methodist Church, said Harriette Ramsey, concerned citizens president.

"There have been concerns expressed at our meetings about problems with the year 2000," Mrs. Ramsey said. "We decided to get people to talk to our group. They will bring literature and answer any questions the public has."

The Y2K panel will be filled with representatives from local companies and public offices, Mrs. Ramsey said.

"We have people in all different walks of life attending the meeting," she said. "We have Ron Dials, a representative of Ohio American Water; Kathleen Patrick, the South Point Post Office postmaster; Clayton Mowder, a Kmart pharmacist; Bill Morrison, the South Point School District computer technologist; Richard Sullivan, South Point Firstar bank manager; Jim Coy, a representative of Cabell-Huntington Hospital; Don Mootz, a 911 representative; and Dave Kennedy, an American Electric Power representative."

And the list will not stop there. Concerned citizens members will continue to search for people who will be able to allay any fears the public might have, Mrs. Ramsey said.

"We’re still working on asking more people," she said. "We were thinking of getting someone from a grocery store. People have asked if the stores will have ordered enough in advance in case the computers won’t take the order."

The big questions will be about the bank’s Y2K readiness, however, Mrs. Ramsey said.

"Most people are concerned about the banks – their money – of course," she said. "But others are concerned that there will be a backlog in the mail delivery system. Some people get checks in the mail and they don’t want there to be any confusion in the processing."

Each individual on the panel will be allowed to present a four to five minute speech about what their organization is doing to insure Y2K readiness, with a question and answer session to follow.

Anyone in Lawrence County is welcome to attend, Mrs. Ramsey said.

"We invite anyone to attend, because it might be helpful," she said. "What would be helpful in our area would be the same in other areas, because I’m sure everyone is preparing in the same way."

The Concerned Citizens of Burlington is a community organization which meets monthly for the betterment of the area, Mrs. Ramsey said.

"Anytime someone comes and expresses a concern about things, we try to get a speaker to come and talk to the group," she said. "We try to address anything that’s of concern to the community."