Palm Coast Observer
Opinion

Editor’s Note: In her submission to the Election Guide, Jane Gentile-Youd wrote that one of her priorities would be to "make" Florida Hospital Flagler add a trauma unit. In our endorsement of her opponent, the Palm Coast Observer pointed out her "make" claim as evidence that her approach to business development was "unrealistic." Her editorial below was written in response.

By Jane Gentile-Youd

Wow! I used the word “make” instead of “make an effort” for Florida Hospital to create a trauma center in Flagler County, and you just swiftly blew my 16.5 years of volunteering my efforts, time and even money down the drain? That’s your excuse for endorsing my opponent who has never once addressed the County Commission in his life?

You completely disregarded my successful efforts to safeguard our quality of life, and my lobbying for the betterment of all of us in Flagler County, including my objection to the purchase of the sick hospital building on the day of infamy — May 6, 2013.

Public safety is of the utmost importance. You are obviously unaware or don’t care to confirm that trauma centers are a necessary component of EMS. You obviously did not do your homework as I did.

Florida Hospital Flagler is a religious nonprofit hospital. They have enjoyed tax exemptions of about $1 million per year since they opened 16 years ago.

How small was Flagler County when they opened, and they still have only 99 beds for 110,000 people? Our public safety is suffering because we do not have a trauma center.

The hospital is not allowed to run as a business for profit. Flagler County is hovering around 110,000 residents, and none of us have a trauma nor maternity center nor even a complete program for every type of heart surgery. I know people who were transferred to Daytona. The closest trauma center is in Daytona Beach, and we don’t have a helicopter available anymore between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m. to transport emergency needs.

With the ever increasing number of accidents, our roads sometimes are backed up or even at a standstill, which could be critical in transporting an injured person to Daytona. As commissioner, I assure you I would take this very seriously.

Apparently, total honesty, years of devotion to my county and countless accomplishments didn’t factor into your endorsement of Mr. Mullins. Neither did your own disclosures of (some of) his previous baggage nor your knowledge of the text on a Mullins Management cell phone in 2017, which text clearly says, “Stop renting to the Shameka’s the Latoya’s the Rhonda’s and anyone with the name similar to a car.” (See Editor’s Note below.)

It’s been a rough tough campaign for me. I never would have offered my heart and soul to run for commission had I known in advance that my qualifications mean nothing compared to those of someone who has never once participated in an issue before our elected officials, whose spending tops $120,000 (for a job that pays $53,00), a knocking-on-doors marathon, the most-signs-in-Flagler-history contest, and who makes promises that the almighty above would have a hard time delivering — in addition to his “visions” for our county when, other than buying a tiny house in Bunnell, he hasn’t even shown us not even a cookie crumb of proof that he is a true resident in the district he is running for, District 4.

I hear “Good luck, Jane” every day. I can proudly say, "If I win, we all win." If I lose, the real losers will be “all the citizens of Flagler County” says the Metro Spirit, a news outlet in my opponent’s hometown, Augusta, Georgia.

They should know, don’t you agree? Since this is where Mr. Mullins comes from and has lived most of his life until about two years ago?

Disclosing the truth is unfortunately confused with “bashing.” The truth by any other name is still the truth, and just as I live my life by the truth, I do my homework and disclose the truth. Isn’t this what the voters deserve to know?

Maybe now the Observer will do their homework before stating their “unbiased” opinion, but I am not counting on it in the next week.

Thank you nonetheless, Observer, for letting me speak my piece.

Jane Gentile-Youd is a candidate for County Commission, District 4.

Editor’s Note: Did Gentile-Youd mean "make an effort" to get the hospital to add a trauma unit, or did she mean "make"? In an interview with the Palm Coast Observer on Sept. 21, Jane Gentile-Youd was asked to explain what she meant by "make." She acknowledged that she didn’t have authority to make the hospital do anything by herself. But, she said, the hospital is “getting away with murder” because it doesn’t pay taxes, and, if she does get elected, she said she will tell the hospital, “Hey, you guys, get in shape, or I’m going to do what I can do to make sure you pay property taxes.” That sounds like a threat to "make" the hospital add a trauma center, and therefore her written statement was still used in the explanation for our endorsement of her opponent.

Gentile-You'd credentials as a real estate broker were not mentioned in the Election Guide because her submission exceeded the word limit. No disrespect or harm was intended.

With regard to the text about “the Shameka’s,” Mullins told the Observer, "This text did not come from my phone."