Dear Editor:

You go out to the mailbox and pick up a manila envelope with black print on the upper left corner.

The top line is as follows:

Department of the Army

Vicksburg District Corps of Engineers

4155 Clay St.

Vicksburg, MS 39183-3435

What would you conclude if you received mail from these people?

Is your blood pressure elevated or would you be worried?

What’s going on?

The obvious thing to do would be to open the envelope and see what’s up. I opened the envelope and started reading page one.

In condensed form, Mr. Pierce from the Washington Parish Reservoir Organization is requesting that the Vicksburg District of the Army Corps of Engineers issue a permit for them to build a 3,262-acre reservoir in the Oak Grove Community in Washington Parish.

Now, if you received a letter like we have, Mamie and Edward, it tells us that our home and four acres of land have been selected as a candidate for the reservoir in Washington Parish provided a permit is issued to Mr. Pierce to build a reservoir in Washington Parish.

We’re on the opposite side because we oppose a reservoir in the Oak Grove Community.

Our task is to do what we can by getting as many people to sign our petitions in the parish. We have them at many businesses all over the parish. We have a lot of signatures at this time and hope there are more to come.

Also, by signing our petitions, they are telling everyone that they do oppose the reservoir in the Oak Grove Community in Washington Parish.

If you have a house or property or both and have no intention of selling either one, would you be upset if they forced you to sell it against your will?

Also, if they presented you with a check and the amount was not satisfactory to you, what option would you have if one were available?

I also understand that before the transaction is over you would be told about how many days you had to vacate the property and the house.

Also, if the reservoir were reality (heaven forbid), three cemeteries would be flooded and also six others would be either flooded or blocked by water and one would have water underneath the graves.

Also, prior to the flooding of three cemeteries, all occupants would be dug up and transferred to an alternate site.

I understand that all monuments would be transferred to the alternate site.

I understand that many people would be opposed to this activity.

Note, if you oppose this activity and you oppose the reservoir, call Winford Pittman at 985-732-7782.

– Ed McDonald