OTTUMWA —
We had been planning our family reunion for over a year. My sisters did the planning and bought decorations and supplies. In April they reserved the Merrill Cabin at Memorial Park for June 23. They booked it with an Ottumwa Parks employee who told them that we were the only ones on the books for that time frame, so if they wanted to, they could pick up the key to the cabin after June 20 to decorate. On June 22, they went to the park and spent over two hours moving the tables around and putting up the decorations. They brought in plates, napkins, cups (still in the packages unopened) citronella candles, large bowls for chips and toys for the kids, even a “Slip and Slide” still in its box. They locked the cabin and left.
Imagine their shock and dismay when they got to the cabin around 9 a.m. June 23 to find everything gone! They called the office, but there was no answer, so they drove to The Beach Ottumwa. There they spoke to a lifeguard who was sympathetic and helpful. She called the parks department employee and gave her all of the information. My sisters were told that someone went in and “cleaned up” the cabin for us. Why would they do that? We had the cabin reserved for that day and it was obviously set up for a party. We had spent over $80 on the items that were “thrown out.” My sisters finally spoke to the parks department employee in person that morning, but instead of acting in a professional manner and apologizing for what had happened, she told them, “We have your name and number, we'll call you on Monday” and proceeded to close the door in their face. We had to go out and spend another $40 worth of supplies so we would have plates, napkins, cups, etc. ... foregoing the decorations. Luckily the food was catered in, so the picnic wasn’t a complete bust.
Monday, my sister was gone all day and missed the call. On Tuesday, she called and spoke to the parks department director. He offered no apology for the actions of his employees or to reimburse the cost of the items they had “cleaned up.” He did offer to refund the $25 for the cost of the cabin. But one would think they could bit a bit more professional, apologize and write a check for $120.
Elizabeth (Oakes) Hultman
on behalf of the Oakes family
Ottumwa
Letters to the Editor
July 16, 2012
'Cleaned up' reunion warrants an apology
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