As long time residents of Austin, we recall and appreciate the many times the community stepped up in support of past levy initiatives — ones that provided the strong educational foundation and facilities for our own children, and ones that our granddaughters are now benefiting from.

As retirees, we continue to have a strong interest in the future of Austin — in this instance, ‘future’ relates to our community’s youngest children. Now is the time to support the creation of a permanent district owned facility for our early childhood programming that addresses the space and structural needs it requires.

As our community embraces the importance of, and emphasis on, early childhood education, it is time to build anew to take care of the next generation. Community input, once again, has been instrumental in researching the needs, possible solutions, and moving a proposal forward.  The addition to Woodson to accommodate Early Childhood programs would create a Pre-K/kindergarten setting under one roof and enable collaboration with special resources, services and educational staff. Our strong Early Childhood Special Education programs serve all families in the community who have children identified with special needs. Early Childhood Family Education is outreach programming that is also community focused.

We view voting YES for the proposed referendum on April 9 as an opportunity to continue to support the community as it addresses the challenges of the future.  Thank you for your consideration.

David and Susan Ruzek

Austin, MN