There was a deeply disturbing article from WOWT-TV out of Omaha. They reported that a volunteer firefighter, Andrew Coates (22), who was homeschooled, applied to the Fremont Fire Department to pursue his dream of saving lives. The city rejected his application because he was homeschooled.
Apparently, in the City of Fremont's world, you get hired for who you are, not because of your qualifications or merits. According to WOWT, Mr. Coates has the backing of his boss, the Cedar Bluffs Fire Chief, and he got his state EMT license.
We were homeschooled after third grade, so this struck close to home. We owe a debt of gratitude to the Cap Factory in Grant City for taking a chance on us even though we didn't have a GED at the time. We made quota on one station and got 75% on two others in the 1 1/2 years we were there. We would have been broke or not doing this paper without it.
If we want kids to make good choices, the last thing people with hiring authority should do is throw up barriers where there should be none. We hear people all the time complain about why people won't work anymore. We submit that actions like the City of Fremont's are one reason why nobody wants to work.
The best way to change this elitist mentality or to prevent it in the first place is for people to attend their local council meetings, county commission meetings, and other local governing bodies. Elections at the city council level matter just as much as elections for the White House.
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