Saving the Penguins

Hey pens fans,
We hockey fans need to stick together. Please, write the governor and let him know that we need to save our Penguins. Eklund, who is doing so much inform the fans of his situation, posted the following link on his site to write to the governor http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/Governor/govmail.html This is a simple for to send Governor Rendell what your think. We need to do everything we can to save the team. Please send me copies of your letters, if you like, for me to post to show how much this team means to us. Send them to me at pensfan17148@msn.com Here is a copy of what I hahd to say to Governor Rendell.
I have lived in Western Pennsylvania for my entire life and I do not intend on leaving. There is a sense of community and commitment here, that I could not imagine living without. It is amazing how things become such a part of who we are and hat this area is. I write to you today, because if not action is taken we will suffer a loss to this area, which will be felt by all the people in each community. The Pittsburgh area is a wonderful place to be from and I am proud to live here. Our pride comes from our past with the greatness in the Steel Industry and the strength of the area today, as well. We are also proud of our sports teams. Their histories are linked with the very history of te city and surrounding communities. Not so many years ago, the Steelers ad the Pirates were in need of a new home. Three Rivers Stadium's time was drawing to an end. the government of the state and the city came together to find a way to replace one building, full of history, with not one, but two state of the art facilities for the teams to play in. Heinz Field and PNC Park are to great tributes to this achievement. Now another integral par t of our city is calling on the government for help. The Pittsburgh Penguins are as much a part of this city as any other organization. The Penguins have been a part of who we are since 1967. During that time, they have proud pride to tis city. We have the pleasure of having one of the all-time great players and a Hall of Famer, in Mario Lemieux as an owner. He brought the Stanley Cup to Pittsburgh and has saved this team time and again. Now, we have the privilege of seeing the next generation of superstars in Sidney Crosby play for us. Under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement with the league, the Penguins, now have a chance at being a real competitor and could once again bring the Stanley Cup back again. We are in serious danger of losing them. I cannot fathom why the government is not doing anything to save them. The Penguins are in need of a new arena. The Mellon Arena, know to us fans as our beloved "Igloo," is coming to the end of its time. It is far worse off than Three Rivers Stadium was when it was replaced. The government needs to do all it can to keep the Penguin here where they belong. If the team were to leave countless jobs would be lost. The tax revenue that the team brings in would also be lost. Downtown businesses would suffer because people would not have a reason to go into that part of the city. It would hurt many people. The facility would be used for much more than hockey, as the Mellon Arena is now. It would be used for concerts, shows, the circus, conventions, children' shows (like Disney on Ice or Sesame Street Live), it could house basketball, hockey tournaments, wrestling, monster trucks, figure skating, and many more things yet to be thought of. Even if the new building is not built and the Penguins would be lost to us, the city would still need a new facility for all the other events mentioned. There is not another indoor space with that capacity for the events listed above in the city. If there is no building for it, that revenue would also be lost and more people would be out of work. I am pleading as a hockey fan, as a Pittsburgher, as a Pennsylvanian please do not let this city lose the Penguins. Growing up here, some of my fondest memories are of night spent at the Penguin games with my dad and cheering on our hometown team. The crowd is was always so excited and there was so much energy in the air. I dream of someday taking my future children to those games and telling them the stories of the great players and this great city. Please, do not take that dream away from this city. If you let this team be lost, when an eight year old child asks their parents why the Penguins are gone, you should be the one to have to tell them that you would not spend the money, like the government did for the other teams and the team had to leave. You can explain to the them why their heroes left and why we no longer have our hockey team.