SRO meeting provided good information to public

I attended the meeting on June 5 about the SRO (School Resource Officer) for the Libby schools. I expected to see a SRO (standing room only) crowd, given all the negative social media talk, but less than 20 people showed up.

Included in the audience were city councilors Taylor, Dufficy and Williams; Apparently, absent councilors Smith, Zimmerman and Beach felt they had nothing to learn about this issue.

We received an outstanding presentation/Q&A session from Craig Berringer and Scott Kessel, that lasted for about an hour.

I arrived at this meeting with misgivings and concerns, mostly about guns in school. But what is being presented here is much more than just a security officer.

Chief Kessel’s initial overview was thorough, well thought out, and touched on pretty much every subject the audience had questions about. Everyone in attendance had the chance to ask every question they had.

It was obvious to all assembled that Craig, the school board and Scott, have all really done their homework.

There will be another presentation on June 11, 6:30 pm., in the Ponderosa room at City Hall. If you have any concerns or questions about the hiring of a school resource officer, property tax levy, and/or the Flathead Electric grant, don’t miss this meeting. Come stump the experts with your questions.

— Gary Armstrong, Libby