Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901 | | On Friday I went to the local high school to pick up letters written to special folks requesting their involvement in "Middletown Days." To my surprise, the teacher coordinating the project not only reached out to students at the local high school, but at the middle school as well. Last year's project resulted in 30 letters being written and the Fox News Channel showing up. How many letter did I get this year? 110 letters!
Here is a brief sampling from the students:
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"Dear Steve Jobs:
"I'm writing this letter to invite you to Middletown Days on Saturday, June 16th. You could have Apple get a booth at our festival and promote your products. We encourage you to come because MHS has some very special animation software from LucasFilms Ltd. I also must mention that last year Fox News came and did a story on us. Sincerely - Aurelio Rodriguez" (Middle School Student)
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"Dear Mr. McConnell,
"Hi, my name is James Augustus and I live in the wonderfully small town of Middletown, California which is located 24 minutes north of lovely Calistoga. Since it is the goal of your show to showcase the slower small town life style that is usually overshwadowed by thh bigger cities I firmly believe that Middletown is the place for you and your crew to be on Saturday, June 16th for Middletown Days. Midddletown Days is our small town festival which is charged with a TNT load of enthusiasm. I invite you to come and see for yourself first hand the upside of slowing down that is so clearly seen in Middletown. Thank you for your time in reading my letter, have a great day. Sincerely - James Augustus" (Middle School Student)
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"Dear Mr. Stossel,
"This small town we call Middletown has an annual parade and festival. Do you know there is an upside to slowing down? Our small rural town believes it has the freshest air and the best wine of all of California. Middletown Days (our festival) has a lot of games, and a lot of fun. There is a rodeo. There is even kareoke competition for kids. Our parade has a lot of the town's companies. At the end of the parade the trophies are given out. My Mom and I have put a float in three years in a row and won first place. Last year, Fox News came and now it is your turn. This annual festival is all day June 16th. If you came it would mean so much to the whole town. Sincerely - Hannah Barnett" (Middle School)
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"Dear Roger Ailes,
"I wanted to personally write a letter and thank you for taking the time to send, Adam Housley, a correspondent to our forgotten community last year, to our yearly, "Middletown Days" festival. Having the Fox News Channel here made us feel a part of the map. I was told it was the first time in the 45 year history of this western parade and festival, you are the first major TV network that paid attention to us and addressed the parade crowd and congratulated the townspeople. What an honor.
"I am 16 years old and I have lived here 15 years of that, and I can tell you that we have a great community with a lot to offer. Our town has a history here that would make a great story. We hope that Adam's visit here made an impression so he will want to make an appearance this year. This town has a story that needs to be shared and who better to tell than Fox. As Middletown and I extend an invitation to you, I hope we will see the Fox News Channel here again this year. You won't be disappointed. Our Middletown Days parade will be held on the weekend of June 15-17. Sincerely - Kristie Gillies" (Sophomore, Middletown High)
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"Plan-It Locations,
"I would like to inform you about Middletown days. Middletown days comes once a year and it's a n event that everyone looks forward to every year. There are so many great activities for the kids and adults to participate in. Middleotown days is June 16-17th, Saturday and Sunday. First of all there is the Middletown Days parade. There will be floats, old fashion cars, people riding on unicycles, horses, animals. Also the 4-H and FFA clubs always make a float to represent how important agriculture is to this town. All the stores in Middletown feel so strongly about this event, they keep their downs open and hand out water and goodies. At the end of the parade there are three judges that will judge your floats that are in different categories. I am in the Middletown 4-H club and we have won first place for having the best float for about three years. It is a great feeling because the sidewalks and streets are filled with people who love what you and others have done and it means so much. Two years ago it was raining and we were all so wet, but we just kept on going and our supporters were still there for us.
"After the parade is over then the rodeo starts. At the rodeo there are booths with food and other cute items to buy. There's also a raffle, you can win sables and pretty much any kind of horse supplies. People sell animals there; I bought my pot belly pig there last year. On the last day there is the night dance. Everyone I know goes to that. There is music and everyone just has a blast. It's a fun night. Well, I hope that I have encouraged you to come and see what Middletown is all about. If you come I hope that you enjoy your stay and make sure to come back next year and support beautiful Middletown. Thank you for taking the time to listen to this letter and hope you have a great day. - Sincerely, Mya Kensy" (Middletown High School)
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"Dear Mr. Lucas,
"First of all let me say bravo to Star Wars, instant classic! Although, that's beside the point. I, along with many others, would enjoy your company at Middletown's famous "Middletown Days." Middletown is an awesome celebration, although I don't know how long it has been around, but there is a parade, a dance, a rodeo and many other activities. There is also food, booths, performers, animals, and so much more fun. We would really appreciate you taking the time and driving up to come see this great celebration. We'll hope to see you there! May the force be with you. - Sincerely, Ashley Fifield" (Middletown High School)
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"Dear Gov. Arold Schwartzenegger and your wife Maria Shriver:
"I would love to invite you to come to the annual event of Middletown Days Parade. It is held every year in Middletown, CA. So, if you would like to come or have any time in your busy life, I would like for you to send an audio file to (707) 929-9064 welcoming or encouraging everyone to have a nice day at "Middletown Days 2007." If you would like to do so, the file needs to be sent before the date of the parade, which is Saturday, June 16th. If you have any questions or need more information than go to http://middletownca-network.ryze.com
"In Middletown Days Parade there are a lot of awesome things to do. Like buy things, go dancing late at night. There are floats, music, food and a lot of other stuff. I have been in the parade for the last six years. It would be nice if you could make it. - Sincerely, Kristy Fiddler" (Middletown High School).
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Do you know what would be great to add to this kind of enthusiasm? Support from Ryzers around the world. It happened last year when many of you took the time to call or email the Fox News Channel. This time, all I am requesting is a private message to me via Ryze encouraging any one of the seven individuals mentioned here. Just choose one and write me an email message including your own contact information so the recipient will realize where the message originated. I will reformat the Ryze message, print it out, put the letter in its own envelope and include that envelope along with the ones to provided by the students. By so doing, we can create an international buzz for "Small Town USA" (Middletown, CA). But please do not put this off. I want to send off these letters in the next few days. (There is a lot of red tape to overcome to make things happen around here - even at the local high school level. People are slow to respond. This year's letter-writing campaign was recommended back in February.)
I sincerely appreciate everyone who chooses to participate in this very special effort.
Lamar Morgan
Network Moderator
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