INC NEWS - Neighborhood Hero

[Ken Gasch]

Mr Anderson and the rest of INC,

In naming a neighborhood hero, I can think of no better person than my next-door neighbor, Al Mangum. Al has lived in Colonial Village for many years and is a steady and dependable contributor to our efforts to make Colonial Village a safer place. The largest obstacle to effectively combating crime in our neighborhood is fear. Everyone loves to weigh in of the closing of the Harris Teeter or the post office making us start using curbside mail boxes, but mention a "drug house" and all you hear are the crickets chirping. When we were putting together our neighborhood's safety and crime team, Al would not allow fear to take control. Without Al's wealth of knowledge and steadfast support we would still have drug houses in Colonial Village. When members of our safety and crime team were frightened about retaliation for turning in suspected drug dealers, Al jumped in and offered to sleep on the team members' couch to protect them. He is the voice of reason, thinking about the effect our actions have on the overall neighborhood, the police and the people whose behavior is in question. Al also is the gentlest, kindest person you have ever met. He is an ardent animal advocate and a neighborhood resource for taking care of stray and abused animals or just offering treats to animals he sees on his morning walk with his three dog children. It is touching to see a tattooed ex-Marine and ex-cop who will not let you borrow his extension ladder because a bird has made a nest in it and she just had her babies. "You can borrow my brother's ladder," he said. On a purely personal level, Al is the best next-door neighbor anyone could ever have. He offers advice, dogsitting, tools and camaraderie and does so unselfishly. 

Living in my neighborhood over the past four years would not have been as rich or rewarding for my family without Al next door. And as our neighborhood association moves forward with its work, I sleep better knowing that Al is there to boost our confidence and keep us on our course of making Colonial Village a more wonderful and safer place to be. Al lives at 2514 Cascadilla and his phone number is 317-1271.

Sincerely,

Ken Gasch
2518 Cascadilla
Durham, NC 27704
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