Dear Editor

I keep seeing these signs, advertisements and newspaper articles that keep reminding Hartselle residents to shop Hartselle and keep our local tax dollars in our local community.

But why should we as Hartselle residents shop and spend our money in Hartselle when the city and schools we support do not spend their money in Hartselle when they could or have the opportunity to do so?

I know various people that work for the city and they have told me about numerous occasions when they get together for an event or special meeting and when doing so have gone outside of Hartselle for lunch.

Morning meetings when someone brought in Krispy Kreme when Hartselle has a local donut shop. But yet it is these local businesses and Hartselle residents that support Hartselle city employees and their wages, but they spend their money somewhere else.

The Hartselle schools, which are always asking the Hartselle community for support and money, do not even spend money in the Hartselle community when they have the opportunity.

It just seems wrong to drive through Decatur and see a Hartselle school bus, with students from Hartselle schools, outside of a Decatur business and you know they are spending Hartselle residents’ tax dollars, especially when there was a place in Hartselle that could have supplied the same service.

So until the city and schools fully support Hartselle businesses, I find it very hard to get excited about shopping Hartselle.

Jerry Henderson

Hartselle