News-Record.com

I would best describe Brenda Bower's call to our offices the other day as "politely exasperated."

She wanted to know if there's anything we could do to clarify that her name is Brenda Bower without the "s."

Brenda Bowers with the "s" is a semi-regular letter writer and frequent blog commenter. Problem is, says Brenda without the "s," is that her almost namesake often expressed opinions that not only aren't hers but criticize people with whom she regularly works, including Police Chief Tim Bellamy.

Brenda Bower is a transition counselor for the school system, many she helps students from detention centers re-enter the classroom.

She also is the daughter of former Guilford County Sheriff Walter "Sticky" Burch.

Fellow church members, co-workers, even her mother has confronted her about what they've read in the paper, even though it was written by Brenda Bowers.

We've had cases of people with the same names being confused, as in Greensboro Grasshoppers General Manager Donald Moore and another Donald Moore who is a frequent critic of the coliseum.

But never, so far as I can recall, a case of names that are almost identical.

Didn't people read closely enough to see the letter writer's last name had no "s"?

Apparently not, I guess, if even Brenda Bower's mother is confronting her.

"I just don't want them to think I've gone off the deep end," she said.

What to do?

As I told Brenda Bower, I don't believe this warrants a correction or a clarificaition, but she could write a letter to the editor delineating the difference in their names and viewpoints.

Or she could ask her friends and familty to please read a little more carefully, I guess.