" Just The Facts: Who cares? Obviously YOU cared. You cared enough to put your foot in your mouth over the now infamous THERE versus THEIR debate. The following is a passage taken directly from Mr. Johnson's comments:

"What she has done is not only severely damaged the integrity of the downtown but also hampered in there fight to survive the so called BIG BOX takeover west of town. The DDA needs all of there resources to be put together to have a fighting chance to survive this push and what she did was make it so the local merchants weren't just competing against the BIG BOX stores but also against there so called leader..."

In this short passage, Mr. John managed to incorrectly use the word THERE instead of the word THEIR 3 times. What does this mean? It means that Just The Facts is probably not a proof reader by profession and is someone who should adjust his ego to brains ratio by making sure he knows what he is talking about before he opens his mouth. It also means that Mr. Johnson is probably not an English major, but being one isn't a requirement to be on the local city council. In my opinion, being responsible, looking out for our best interests, making good decisions, and being accountable for mistakes as well as being willing to admit making them SHOULD be requirements for elected officials and community representatives like those in authority within the DDA.

As for the Schuster case, it was all avoidable. Citizens need to get a grip on what really happened. Schuster is not some criminal mastermind. It turns out that nothing she did was complicated at all. She could have been caught years ago and hundreds of thousands of dollars ago if her former superiors had been doing their job and simply employed a basic system of checks and balances to verify her work. Trust trust trust, that is all we hear from these former superiors, that Schuster violated their trust. Well of course she did you damned fools, you made it easy for her by never checking up on her! Count your blessings that she didn't take you to the cleaners for even more than she actually did while you were sleeping at the switch. It would be a good gesture right about now for her former superiors to admit that they messed up, that they blew it, that they should have checked her books and verified what she was doing instead of just singing the blues about how bad she ripped us off and for how many years. She did what she did and did it for years because her superiors weren't watching!

Bad English isn't the problem, bad judgement is. Bad decisions, lack of responsibility and maybe just a dash of stupidity, THAT is the real problem. Schuster's former superiors dropped the ball big time and they need to get honest, get smart and admit it.

Another city official made the comment that Schuster played people for fools. Well, if the shoe fits… "

" 6 and 7th lines it is there. "

" Kylie,
I agree, who cares? But since mistand7up brought it up, I was just pointing out there wasn't used incorrectly, and I still don't see it. Where to you believe it was wrong? Put in the end, the damage was done, and our town has lost a little of its shine. I hope we can work together and replace it. "

" Well first of all Just the Facts, he did use "there" incorrectly, second of all who cares (yes, it was correct where you were looking, but reread it sweetheart)! I'm sorry I didn't see anywhere on the headlines where it said "grammar test". Steve's opinions came from the heart. If I had a penny for everytime I saw people use there improperly in a formal or business letter I would never have to read another in my life because I would be wealthy beyond words. She got what she had coming, end of story, move on, and wait for the next Gaylord gossip (I'm sure it won't take long for something to surface in this town). I crack up everytime I read these things because you guys (usually all the same people) wonder so far from topic it isn't funny! By the way I love how you all hide behind an assumed name, it is easy to put someone down when you are joe blow from far far away. Kudos to those that actually have an opinion I enjoy reading it. Darn I was one that wondered away from the subject, but I was confused what was actually going on in this conversation. "

" I wouldn't feel that sorry for Sherrie concerning her Mother. I talked to the person who knows for certain Sherrie never even paid for her Mother's funeral. Two years went by and she never even bought a
stone for her Mother the same person told us he brought that too because he felt so bad for her Mother.
it. "

" Justthinking, what a wonderful and accurate statement. You hit the nail on the head and quite eloquently I might add. Hats off to you, THANK YOU "

" Truly mistand7up I just don't understand your logic. Steve Johnson is a man of integrity who serves this community well, with honesty and integrity. Here is someone who addressed his feelings as someone who has been truly victimized by Schuster, and you critique his grammer? There are many who serve in public positions with varying degrees of talent - some with the written word - others with knowledge. I know for a fact that Steve Johnson's experience working with engineers and construction projects, brings a level of knowledge not only needed by a municipality but has helped provide guidance to many community imporovement projects. Some of the most intelligent people I know cannot spell nor write legibly - therefore your comments are not only unfair, they are silly. I am sure when Mr. Johnson wrote his impact statement he thought it would be for the court only - he is probably just as surprised as many others who found their words regarding this theft of public funds and their feelings about it printed in the paper.

As far as the other comments go about the subject of Schuster's mother's death being in bad taste - well here is a true story for you. A number of years ago a young couple in our community lost their very young daughter due to a very terrible disease. It was heartbreaking. Schuster attended the funeral - and after, proceeded to criticize the parents - mind you in a very public location - because the parents had an open casket for their daughter. Bad taste. You bet - but that was Schuster. And still those of us who knew her - treated her with compassion when she lost her mother, even knowing how she treated others. Guess that is the difference between Schuster and the rest of us. The base level of integrity she had regarding many issues was surely a contributing factor to how she did what she did for so many years - without remorse. "

" The comment was just to support how selfish she is and always was. (Hands on hips). She cares about no one other than herself. And was what "just for show?" "

" Gee Gaylord, I guess you told Missingupnorth off; are your hands on your hips too? Seems pretty petty. From what I understand her Mother has been gone for a couple of years long before any of this came out. Couldn't her employer have taken heart and taken care of that for her family. Put the stuff in a box already and deliver it. Afterall she worked for a family run business or was that just for show. "

" Well MissingUpNorth..She has yet to gather her mother's personal belongings from her former place of employment. She has not shown up yet. "

" Dear mistand7up,
I just reread Mr. Johnson's comments three times. I see that he has used the word "there" twice.
"Living in a small town there is always..." There is use correctly in this sentence. The second time "...betraying our town in the future that when caught there is a stiff penalty to pay..." Again There is correctly used.
Their -belonging to them
They're- contraction they are.
There - At that place, in that respect, at that point.
In both cases there is the correct use.

Secondly, I am sorry you feel the downtown prosperity is gone. Thankfully many of the rest of us in Gaylord continue to shop local and support the downtown businesses. I love shopping in downtown. "

" Mistand7up, I can't beive that you would put down someone's grammer. This letter is not about proper grammer. It's about someone stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the citizens of Gaylord. "Thank you" to Stephen Johnson for voicing his opinion, and making a bold statement about the facts of this horrible crime. Missingupnorth, go cry somewhere else. Mr. Johnson wasn't bad mouthing the death of Sheri's mother, just stating that when she died it seemed as though she must have left Sheri alot of money. Like Mr. Johnson, I am a local business owner and work very hard at my job. It angers me that someone would use taxpayers money to buy themselves new vehicles, second homes, new clothes, etc. Thanks again to Mr. Johnson for stating the facts. If we don't stand up to this thief, and put her in her place,this kind of thing may happen again. "

" The downtown area is too congested, too hard to spot the store you are looking for, and has no place to park, in this day and age of getting gouged at the pump,(as always in Gaylord) we need to save money, move stores to the west side of town, and I'll go there. "

" Mr. Johnson,
By no means is this letter intended to defend the actions of Mrs. Schuster, however her mother's death was not relevant to this case. Furthermore, you mentioning her mother’s death was in bad taste. At a time when Gaylord City Officials need to gain public trust, your behavior is embarrassing. Talk about really hitting her while she is down, there is plenty of factual allegations which you could have mentioned. As a daughter, I can put myself in her shoes, what daughter would want to throw away/give away her mother’s most personal belongings (especially after watching her mother struggle with cancer)? I know for a fact Mrs. Schuster did clean out her mom's house because my mother helped her. Grow up and focus on the problems at hand (as there are plenty) instead of displaying the petty gossip small towns are known for. "

" Additionally, while I feel your sympathy for the downtown stores, the "BIG BOX" stores west of town are there to stay. What you are running into is the fact that Gaylord is a growing city, more urbanized than it was even 10 years ago. The prosperity that downtown businesses had is now gone, and the ones that survive will likely make just enough to support themselves. The "BIG BOX" stores will thrive, because their purchasing power allows them to dominate the market, and with Michigans economy and higher gas prices local residents are going to shop where they pay less. "

" Mr. Johnson,
I found your letter interesting, but the primary issue I have with it is your proper use of grammar. There is a difference in meaning between "there" and "their". I would think that anyone in any city elevated to your level on city council would have the proper education to write and speak clearly. It does not say much to the rest of the state when local officials are unable to express themselves in writing properly. "