In this June 30, 2021, file photo, Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention Director Nirav Shah speaks at his final, regular pandemic press briefing in Augusta. Credit: Troy R. Bennett / BDN

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Articles about the vaccination and mask-wearing controversies keep on coming. Opinions are all over the map. But only Ebenezer Scrooge would deny that Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention director, Nirav Shah, and his overworked staff do everything they can to monitor and prevent the spread of COVID-19. So this holiday season, spend 57 cents and the cost of a Christmas card to send those public servants a holiday “thank-you.”

Don’t use email: I am sure their inboxes are overflowing. Here’s the   address: Dr. Nirav D. Shah, Director; Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention; 286 Water Street; State House Station 11; Augusta, Maine 04333-0011.

Andy Stevenson

Belfast