To the Editor:
My son has just begun second grade at Voorheesville Elementary. He is so happy to be back among his friends, and I want to thank the school and the district for working so hard to make sure that he can do that safely.

This pandemic is not over, and in fact the Delta variant is not only a more contagious form of COVID but also one that is more harmful to children. Requiring students to wear masks, given the information we have now, just makes sense.

It’s a small price to pay for the chance to learn and play in person. Wearing a mask isn’t anyone’s first choice, but keeping our community safe should be.

That’s why I am concerned that one of the candidates for New Scotland Town Board, Charissa Mayer, is opposed to school mask mandates. [“Experts enlighten listeners about masks and vaccines at school board hearing,” The Altamont Enterprise, Sept. 1, 2021]. She says that parents should get to choose what’s best for their children.

But there are plenty of school rules that parents don’t choose and still follow — from what their kids wear, to what they learn, to what immunizations they have to get. Having each parent make those decisions may sound like freedom, but it would create chaos. Chaos and a measles outbreak.

E. Reilly

Voorheesville