Save Critical Path Please send letter
This is a follow up to the email I sent a week ago regarding Critical
Path. It seems snail mail is the best way to support the continued
existence of this important Philadelphia ISP.


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Stan Pokras <pokras@ntronline.org>
Date: Tue, Aug 19, 2008 at 6:34 PM
Subject: [CTCNet Phl] Fwd: Save Critical Path Please send letter
To: ctcnet@lists.delawarevalley.org
Cc: ntr_staff@listsrv.ntronline.org, ntr_friends@listsrv.ntronline.org


Hi all.
I received a note from Jane Shull, director of Philadelphia FIGHT and
the Critical Path Project asking that we circulate another message.
And this message came today from Critical Path staff... We need to
write the Mayor.
Your concern about the continued existence of the Critical Path free
Internet dial-up service needs to be mailed directly to Mayor Nutter.
Let's all write and affirm our support for this essential program.
Stan Pokras
Executive Director, Nonprofit Technology Resources

It seems as though snail mail offers the best response to this effort
to save Critical Path Please see the e-mail from Juliet Fink below.
Please PRINT the letter to Mayor Nutter on your organization's
stationary, sign, and physically mail it to his office. The Mayor's
Office address is:



Mayor Michael Nutter

City Hall

Philadelphia, PA 19107



Please contact Juliet Fink or myself with any questions. Thank You



Dear Mayor Nutter,



The undersigned organizations and individuals urge you to find the
means to support and fund the Critical Path Project.



For over 15 years, the Critical Path Project has been a major force in
the Greater Philadelphia metropolitan region and worldwide in bridging
the digital divide, offering free dial up Internet access and email
accounts with no ads and no restrictions to over 10,000, mostly
low-income families, as well as offering email, website hosting, and
electronic mailing list hosting to local non-profit organizations, DHS
family centers, and affinity groups throughout the nation.



We are currently the Internet backbone for the majority of HIV and
LGBTQ organizations in Philadelphia, and thousands of members of these
communities utilize our free services. This is particularly important
for those who cannot afford high speed connections at home.



For the past six years, Critical Path has had a contract from DHS to
provide Internet connectivity and host webpages for the Family Support
Centers in the public schools. In addition to these functions, which
Critical Path has always fulfilled, the contract has become part of
the funding infrastructure that supports the Critical Path enterprise.
This fiscal year, the contract was extended for two months, and is
now due to end on August 31. While we recognize that DHS may have
other funding needs at this time, we want to call to your attention
the fact that this will be a devastating loss for Critical Path, and
could result in our having to close down the entire network.



If we are forced to close it, the loss of Critical Path will resonate
throughout Philadelphia.



Over 10,000 people in the greater Philadelphia Metro region, mostly
low-income, would lose their Internet access from Critical Path, many
of whom may not have the skills or knowledge to know how to get access
any other way at this time.



Thousands of people would lose access to their email accounts and the
data saved in their inboxes and folders, including staff at
organizations many of which receive funds from the City of
Philadelphia, such as GALAEI, ASIAC, BEBASHI, The AIDS Law Project,
Philadelphia FIGHT, and nearly 25 more.



Over 100 electronic Mailing lists, with thousands of local
subscribers, many of which are key ways in which the non-profit
community, educators, HIV researchers, and low-income Philadelphians
discuss topics of importance to them and spread and receive
information, will be shut down and forced to find another way to
manage their lists.



Nearly 75 websites, the majority of which are non-profits funded by
the city of Philadelphia, such as Project SAFE, CHOICE, COLOURS, Asian
Americans United, and many more, will be shut down and forced find
money in their budgets to pay for hosting and rapidly find an
alternative solution. Shutting down these websites, for even a short
time means that those in the community, will not have access
life-saving information.



A list of the organizations that currently utilize critical path is attached.



We urge you to find the means to refund the Critical Path Project and
by doing so put digital inclusion at the top of your agenda. In order
to more fully describe the Critical Path system and the important role
it plays, we are requesting a meeting with you, along with a small
representation of the organizations and individuals represented below.
We will contact your office for your response.



We thank you for your action and leadership.



Sincerely,







Important: This e-mail message and any attachments is intended for the
exclusive use of the recipient(s) named above. It may contain
information that is protected, privileged, or confidential, and it
should not be disseminated, distributed, or copied to persons not
authorized to receive such information. If you are not the intended
recipient, any dissemination, distribution, or copying is strictly
prohibited. If you think you have received this e-mail message in
error, please notify the sender immediately.



Allison Wolf

Manager of Information Systems

Philadelphia FIGHT/ Critical Path Services

1233 Locust Street

5th Floor

Philadelphia, PA. 19107

215-985-4448 ext.111 (office)

215-985-4952 (Fax)

awolf@fight.org



--

* * *

Stanley R. Pokras, Executive Director Nonprofit Technology Resources (NTR)
Regional Coord, Community Technology Centers' Network (http://www.ctcnet.org/)
Chair, CTCNet of Delaware Valley, Regional Planning Committee
(http://www.ctcnet-philly.org/)

Nonprofit Technology Resources
1524 Brandywine Street
Philadelphia PA 19130
215-564-6686 (day) 215-564-6642 (fax)
267-968-0407 (cell)
Find our "Home Page" at http://NTRonline.org