I got some upsetting news a few days ago when I heard via her husband Tom that Julie Boyle, the proprietor of the Midlothian Family Network website and an outspoken critic of the cement plants in that area and the Congressmen who let them pollute at will, has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She wrote about that in the Star Telegram this past weekend, and as you can see she's doing her best to be positive about it. I know from my correspondence with Julie that she's a strong person, and I feel confident that she will get through this. If anyone can, she can.
Frontburner, which carried a great story on the Boyles' fight to clean up their hometown awhile back (it's unfortunately archived behind a firewall at this time), has three update posts on Julie's diagnosis and the goings on in Midlothian - be sure to read that first one, in which the Boyles share some email from other residents who have experienced unusual health problems.
I'm told that mediation with TXI (see here for more) is still in the works; I'll check back when there's something to report.
In the meantime, a note from Julie in that last Frontburner post brought a smile to my face:
If Joe Barton doesn't stop favoring industries at the expense of families, come the primaries, a bald Republican mother of three undergoing chemo might just take him on.
Get well soon, Julie! We're all rooting for you.
Posted by Charles Kuffner on July 27, 2005 to The great state of Texas | TrackBackHave checked out the Boyle's site, and it is GREAT!
The unholy alliance between TXI and the Midlothian MDA/TIRZ sounds just like the public money-private profit scams involving the creation of the MUD districts in Texas a generation ago.
According to the Boyles website, TXI also hired a lobbyist --- at public education expense! -- to help defeat school finance reform and the property tax cuts in the leg.
As a concrete company, of course, they get to sell the concrete that Texas public schools waste on building those $20 million football stadiums and locker rooms.
Parasitical business interests who feed at the public trough are forever coming up with new schemes and scams to bilk the taxpayers and loot our public institutions. The TIRZ is, for this generation of looters, a contemporary version of the MUD scam.
And of course, school district officials are only too happy to cooperate.
Posted by: ttyler5 on July 27, 2005 1:57 PMFor Julie Boyle
Read your story in Miami Herald and am one step ahead of you. Had lumpectomy last Monday and am awaiting biopsy results. My cancer was found by mammography also and, like you, the hardest part was to tell my children. I have vowed to be a cancer survivor each and every day. Cancer is only part of my life. Like you, I have a husband, children, career as a psychologist, friends, family and community. I will not let cancer be the only thing for me. While I will gather information, evaluate my options and make decisions, I will also laugh every day and tell those I love that I do love them every day! I will squeeze every day dry. I wish you and your family the strenth to fight the fight and to win. There is a lot of support out there. And like you, I also urge every woman to get a mammogram. Best wishes, Dotty Sasmor