Beginning with this post, I wish to write a series of articles of how specifically the non-profit organizations in Erie are vital and add so much to our quality of life as a community. In recent years, perhaps driven by our whacked-out municipal structure, taxation system, and the current moribund state of the city’s finances, our governmental officials have taken to attacking those non-profit organizations which are exempt from property taxes. My agenda is that these organizations should be treated like the essential pillars of our community’s vibrancy that they are. They are to be recognized as significant economic engines and job providers, some with high-income family-thriving jobs. At the same time, I agree with some that there may be some kind of revenue solution needed from tax-exempt organizations, especially when they are engaging in parallel activities to a for-profit entity far from their core mission. But they are not the enemy; they are us. Now to celebrating the non-profits, an important part of why we love Erie.