MASON CITY – At 79 years of age, Korean War veteran Jack McCourt does his best to fight for what he believes in. A pacemaker in his chest doesn’t help, either.
Mr. McCourt, as a military man and a volunteer in the Honor Guard – which performs at military funerals to show respect for veterans – believes and lives by the rule of law, down to the letter.
So when Mr. McCourt was forced to make three trips to the Mason City School Administration building on Monday to turn in a petition with nearly 1,100 names on it, he was understandably agitated. Mr. McCourt was not about to hand in a petition to the wrong person, as the law specifically dictates that school petitions must be turned into the school board financial secretary.
Mr. McCourt had worked for weeks to gain the required minimum of 594 signatures to force the Mason City School District to take a new tax issue to the voters instead of simply allowing the tax to go on the books after the school board approved it last month.
“Somebody has to look out for the poor and elderly,” McCourt said Monday.
McCourt went to the school administration building Monday at 10:30 AM and no one was available to take the petition. He was told then to come back at noon, as Ramona Jeffrey – the designated person to accept the petition – would supposedly back in the building then.
When McCourt came back at noon, Jeffrey was not there.
Finally, at just before 1 PM, McCourt made his third trip to the administration building and Jeffery was there and accepted Mr. McCourt’s petition.
Jeffery said that the petition would be looked over for accuracy but that “if you have this many signatures, we would take it to a vote. We have no problem going to the voters.”
“You’re not gonna win,” Mr. McCourt said.
“Well Jack, we’re going to try,” Jeffrey said.
A vote on the Instructional Support Levy can be expected in June or September, when the regular School Board election will be held.
Mr. McCourt thanked all the Mason City citizens who signed the petition. He also said that whatever the outcome of the vote, he was just glad that the people of Mason City will get a chance to vote on the issue.
Watch video of Korean War Veteran Jack McCourt’s ordeal at Mason City School Administration building:
I wonder how much money could be saved shutting down the alturnitve school made for kids who refuse to follow the rules or attend normal classes. Let’s send them a message before they think their future employer will give them an alturnative work assignment because they do not want to follow company policies.
4 things came to mind after watching this video.
1. Is this what the guys in ZZ Top will look like when they get old?
2.Real “NICE” aside about Dr. Kuehn being a dictator.
3. I think Jack is the definition of the word “Curmudgeon”
4.I’m glad Jack got this petition turned in but he could have been a little more civil. It probably didn’t help having Matt there egging him on.
Jack, it is most certainly disgraceful that a war vet who served and continues to serve his fellow soldiers was treated this way today by this so called school district. You are a true American hero.
Matt, thank you for helping Jack. It’s clear NIT just wants the people to have their vote and the school is lying when they say they have no problem going to the voters or they would have in the first place.
Don’t listen to the insults on this board. Most of them are benefiting from the school tax and probably get their paychecks there, living off the backs of the poor and elderly like Jack said.
I’m voting NO in September.
thank you Jack is all I have to say, good job!
How convenient to omit any mention in text about her attending a funeral. Anything to stir up some controversy. quit robbing Peter to pay the piper..
If Ms. Jeffrey was not there to accept the petition, who was designated to accept it in her absence? I appreciate it that people need personal time, but no one should be so important that only that person can do the job. No taxpayer should ever be told to come back because no one is there to help them. They should be told that the person they wish to see is not there, but there is someone else there to assist them. It’s what we pay taxes for. It’s only common sense and common courtesy.
This would be a great time to publish all the salaries of our school administrators and teachers.
War vets fight for our freedom.
The right to petition is a freedom.
Mr. McCourt fought for those freedoms.
GET IT?
I’m not surprised by the turnout of signatures on this petition. The majority of the population in Mason City is elderly, and the elderly residents of this town have raised their kids decades ago. So, this leaves those residents with kids in this school district without much support for any type of educational advancements.
The world has drastically changed since McCourt had kids in school. What he and his elderly cronies view as unnecessary, are really the necessary skills kids need to have today. Unless, of course, they are going to stay in Mason City and do nothing….
I must have missed something….What’s the Korean War have to do with any of this?
All day with nothing to do but get worked up over someone being at a funeral until early afternoon. What’s wrong with waiting for a phone call from her? OMG. Let the woman have some time with the family AND eat lunch. Just ridiculous. Don’t bug someone at a funeral for dog’s sake! It reminds me of a woman who called my business and said she was a shut in and reamed me a new one because she had sat and waited half the day for someone to show up to do something for her when she had been told it would be sometime that day, but no certain time. Geez. Have some patience.
“And as usual LVS hasn’t read the story, he just wants to call people names.”
Something tells me you did not read the article either. But just to be sure, I printed the page, and took out Dad’s No. 2 blue pencil. Still no blue marks! Nor any mention the woman was away for a funeral.
Sorry old sock, you owe a retraction.
I think what sick is referring to is that the director of finance was out of the office this morning to attend a funeral . The writer conveniently omitted this detail in his story in an effort to paint a picture that Mr. Mccourt was intentionally given the runaround when delivering the petition. The school has to accept the petition, there’s no conspiracy here.
Shut up and open your checkbooks, next thing you know, you are going to want government employees to pay a share of their healthcare cost? How unfair.
Remember, you work for them now, they dont work for you
Who the hell do you think you are? This woman has the right to attend a funeral! The day is NOT over! Stop looking for a fight! Disgusting!
I wanted to remain neutral on the ISL issue and gather all the facts before I decided, assuming it would come to a vote. Thanks to you Jack my mind is now made up. This blatant inepitude and inconsideration has justly earned my NO vote.
Thank you Mr. McCourt.
Win or lose the taxpayers should always vote on such matters. It is most unfortunate that the School Board don’t have the taxpayers best interests as their top priority.
Seems once elected they feel their job is ONLY raise money first. Then find a place to spend it.
What ever happened to respect for the people?
Up or down, the peole have the right to vote!