Kudos, Mt. Prospect, for doing right thing

Thank you, Mt. Prospect, for voting unanimously to build an apartment complex for those living and recovering from mental illness. Thank you for seeing the big picture.

Thank you for putting first the dignity of people already living in our community who have an illness that they did not choose. Thank you for acknowledging a person’s integrity instead of succumbing to stigma, fear and stereotype.

Thank you for seeing the forest from the trees by providing our neighbors with mental illness an environment where they may flourish and be the best they can be within the framework of their illness, preventing them from becoming the casualty of a neglectful society. Thank you for acknowledging mental illness as a brain disorder and not some imaginary stereotype from a late-night horror movie.

Thank you for not wasting your village’s money to the tune of $180,000 and counting because of a lawsuit that may have been filed against you for discrimination. Instead, that money goes to more important endeavors. Along with that, thank you for having open dialogue with your citizens instead telling them that you cannot discuss it because a lawsuit has been filed.

Thank you for taking the high road. Thank you for not insulting the supporters and families with mental illness, by saying that it has nothing to do with discrimination but instead, zoning and parking concerns. Thank you for truly being the City Of Good Neighbors.

As a proud father of a daughter who has mental illness — thank you, Mount Prospect.

Louis S. Guagenti

Arlington Heights