I see our fearless county commissioner, Gina Cerilli Thrasher, is up to her old tricks. According to the article “Westmoreland commissioners oust airport authority board members over restaurant lease” (Sept. 30, TribLIVE), Thrasher orchestrated the dismissal of Donald “Doc” Giffin and the well-liked and respected chairman, Paul Puleo, a successful businessman whose integrity and character are beyond reproach.
I get a little emotional reflecting on Giffin, who is 92 and has been a presence on the authority for years. He moved seamlessly for years in the overlapping worlds of professional sports, business and media. Many famous and influential people wisely sought his counsel. A man of Giffin’s stature simply cannot be replaced. Discharging him now was ill-advised, a bad business decision, disrespectful and an insult to his years of service to the airport.
Puleo and Giffin were veteran business professionals volunteering their valuable time and talents to benefit the airport and county residents. They deserve better. Both were guilty of the same “crime”: They used their business acumen, and experience, to make a rational, logical business decision. That was apparently a fatal political decision, as it ran opposite to the position taken by Thrasher. Does Thrasher think her county employees and associates should think independently or act like loyal subjects?
In the article, she practically dared people to vote her out of office. I intend to take her up on that challenge. I hope other voters join me. Enough is enough.
So, Gina … are you still trying to replace DeNunzio’s at the airport? That’s too bad. You simply won’t find a better restaurant.
David L. Snyder
Salem