Dear Editor: Mayor Rahm Emanuel has added ten days to the school year for Chicago’s Public School children. Included in that ten-day package is the cancelation of the Pulaski and Columbus Day holidays.

Dear Editor: On behalf of the members of the Sixth Grace Presbyterian Church, I would like to say thank you for including the information in the Gazette about our April 5 Maundy Thursday service, our April 7 “The Seven Last Words of Christ, A Sacred Cantata,” and our April 8 Easter morning worship service.

Dear Editor: As the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) plans to implement the longer school day initiative (in the middle of tense negotiations with the Chicago Teachers Union and other unions for new contracts), it appears they will only lengthen the school day without an education plan. A better school day strategy must be developed and contain the following guiding principles:

Dear Editor: God bless you and the Gazette for helping us get the word out once again about our annual Shamrocks for Kids campaign this past March. You continue to be so good to the home, not just during Shamrocks, but throughout the year. We are so grateful that you share news of this mission with the people of our community.

Dear Editor: No question—Illinois’ Medicaid system needs reform. But a one size-fits-all approach to Medicaid will not work. The very existence of safety-net hospitals is at stake. Together, the Association of Safety-Net Hospitals saw nearly half a million Medicaid patients in 2011. More than one of two patients that walk through our doors has government insurance.

Dear Editor: Thank you for the excellent coverage and editorial on the new ward map for Chicago. We see now what deal was made behind closed doors between Mayor Emanuel and the Aldermen: the Aldermen unanimously passed the Mayor’s budget, and the Mayor agreed to turn the other way as the Aldermen carved out their pieces of the City into new wards that would serve their, the Aldermen’s, power and financial security, all in secret from public comment or knowledge.

Dear Editor: With regards to your recent editorial, I thought that you should know that Alderman James Bowler’s descendant, George Bowler, has resided quietly on Bowler Street since 1996. He has enjoyed the history of this neighborhood and attends Holy Family Church, where his grandparents celebrated their wedding and later 50th anniversary back in the ‘50s.

Dear Editor: The latest initiative to collect debt owed to the City from State tax refunds will not sit well with those who can least afford it. I’m not justifying citizens not paying their debts and bills owed to the City, but this feels like piling on.

Dear Editor: The new tax of water to non-profit organizations, proposed in the City of Chicago Budget for 2012, is a disgrace and an affront to the many non-profit organizations that care for the poor of Chicago, all at no expense to taxpayers.

Dear Editor: Instead of people marching against Wall Street, they should be marching every day at City Hall. With higher property taxes, higher water bills, higher parking fees, and needing a license to have a bike and dog, the City is lowering our standard of living.