Lots of people contributed ideas and resources during the the forming of our country, but any first-grade child will tell you that our country’s first President, George Washington, was the “father of our country.”

Likewise, for those of us who lived in this city during its early years, our first mayor, Joel Cowan, was definitely the “father of our city.” My guess is that the great majority of other cities honor their first elected official the same way.

One has to wonder what kind of historical “footnote” the former mayor who wrote your paper last week plans to be himself. It is not enough to be unforgettable (which he probably will sadly be), it is desirable to also be effective.

When I moved to Peachtree City there were 300 families. There was no school, no doctor, and no grocery store. I don’t remember having a traffic light. The non-denominational church met in the old bank building that has long since been torn down.

Joel Cowan and Floy Farr welcomed us all and usually loaned us the money to live here. It is fitting that they have parkways named for each of them. You build a legacy by doing positive things for other people.

In the “old days”, you could “make the paper” if you bought a new red truck, and people actually paid for three-year subscriptions. Fifty years later, people “make the paper” with attack articles. I guess this is another function of the economic downturn.

Mary Chapman

Peachtree City, Ga.

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