Letter: Barbara R. Patton not same as former Opelika mayor

Letters to the editor
Published: August 25, 2008

My name is Barbara R. Patton. I was born and raised in Opelika, and I am a staunch supporter of Mayor Gary Fuller. The past four years have shown excellent progress for our city. Opelika has experienced an influx of new industry which, in turn, has brought a large number of jobs to our city. This alone has been a great blessing to many of our citizens. Our crime rate is dropping, our schools are improving and I believe our city is headed in the right direction. I, for one, am much more proud to call myself an “Opelikian” today than I was four years ago.
It has come to my attention that the recent endorsement ad in the Opelika Auburn News has caused somewhat of a controversy due to my name resembling that of the former Mayor. I would like to point out that my name appearing in the ad was unsolicited, and I volunteered for the endorsement. Although some may have taken this as a campaign “tactic,” I am a resident of Opelika and have the same rights as anyone else to express my preference in the municipal election no matter what my name may be.
Mayor Fuller’s opponent has not provided sufficient justification for me to conclude that there should be any change in our city’s current direction or administration. Mayor Fuller has been an outstanding mayor, and I believe he deserves to serve us as our mayor for another term. I urge all voters in Opelika to join me in voting to re-elect Gary Fuller on Tuesday.
Barbara R. Patton
Opelika