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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1986-10-01, Page 4PAGE 4—>GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1986 Participate in recreational master plan and feasibility study How is that again? Briefing kits were mailed to 45 local organizations and just four briefs were submitted in return? Such apathy in our active town? I am referring to the public input process into the town of Goderich recreational master plan and feasibility study. With the assistance of an appointed committee of in- terested citizens and supported by the Ministry of Citizenship and Culture, the town council has hired professional con- sultants to help determine and analyze public likes and dislikes, proposals and criticism in the field of community recrea- tion in a broader sense, and to come up with a plan of direction. There will not be another opportunity of this magnitude for years, to participate ELSA ,HAYDON directly in the long term planning of our recreational and cultural facilities and pro- grams and sorting out our priorities for the next decade. �" All this has been reported several times during the summer. So do we want people from Toronto to tell us what we should be do- ing in our recreation or are we going to tell them how we visualize our recreational future? Of course, the safest thing is to do or say nothing now, wait until others have done something and then criticizethe whole lot. Not much future in that. Yes, I am a little disappointed since I look- ed at some of the figures of public response in the draft report. When four organizations out of 45 in one category bother to respond, everybody who is working at promoting good recreational variety has reason to be a bit miffed. These four briefs were presented by The Goderich Squash Club, The Goderich Horseshoe Pitching Club, the Survival through Friendship House of Huron County Inc., and La Leche League. Only the first two are strictly recreational groups. Are the other organizations in town so happy with the status quo that they have no word to add and no suggestion to make? It would be nice, if they said so. • To be fair, this is not the whole story of response. Residents of 200 households in town and 100 households in the two neighbor- ing townships were interviewed over the telephone. The first draft report indicates good response to these extensive surveys. In August personal interviews were held with a number of key leaders and represen- tatives of community organizations, pro- viding constructive insight and input. However, 42 community group assess- ment handbooks were also sent to certain groups and associations,.but only 24 of them were returned. The group who had. not responded by the August deadline were sent reminders. If your group is among those who failed to respond earlier, for whatever reason, there is still time to send the material in or to take it to the Recreation Office on McDonald Street. All opinions and proposals are important. It -would be particularly nice and useful to have input from our young people. What do the teenagers think of our, present recrea- tional opportunities and what kind of im- provements are they proposing for the future? Was it not disconcerting to see a recent London Free Press headline, proclaiming "Tour money for small towns difficult to give away?" The Ontario Arts Council has money to spare and is looking for potential sponsors, in order to bring professional live entertainment and cultural events into small communities who might not be able to afford such enjoyment otherwise. Ontour exists to help non-profit communi- Turn to page 5 Opinion THE NEWS PORT FOR GODERICH & DISTRICT SINCE 1848 Goaericn,e SIGNAL-STAR.' BEST ALLQOUND COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER IN CANADA (Greviaeon Cass 3500 4500jCCNA Batter Newspaper Compa4Gon 1984 P.O. BOX '20 HUCKINB ST. INDUSTRIAL PARK GODERICH. ONT. N7A 466 PUBLISHED BY SIGNAL -STAR PUBLISHING LIMITED Founded In 1646 and published oven y Wednesday at Ooderlch, Ontario. Member of the CCNA end OCNA. Subscriptions payable in advance $22.00, [Senior Citizens 619.00 privilege nerd number required] In Ceneda, 660.00 to U.S.A., 680.00 to ell other countries. Single coplee GOC. Display, National and Clossifled advertising retes available on request. Please eek for Rete Cerd No. 16 effective October 1, 1996. Advertising Ib accepted on the conditlonhat In the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous Item, together with the reesoneble allowance for signature, will not be cherged for but that balance of the advertisement will be peld for et the applicable rete. In the avant of e typographical error advertising goods or aervlces et a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising Is merely en offer to sell, end may be withdrewn et any time. The BIgnei-Star le not responsible for the loos or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materiels used for reproducing purposes. General Manager SHIRLEY J. KELLER Editor DAVE SYKES Advertising Manager. DON HUBICK FOR BUSINESS OR EDITORIAL OFFICES...please phone (519)524-2614 Second class mail registration number 0716 Member eNA CCNA Parents beware - sexual assault can happen here A letter to the editor this week asks parents in Goderich to be alerted that a five year old. boy has been sexually assulted by two teenage boys: The author of the letter is the mother of the boy and she wants other parents to be aware that this distrubing event has taken place in our community. "I think if these boys did this to my son, they will do it again to somebody else''s child...The anger, frustration and hurti feel will take time to heal. I will never forget what happened. "It is my hope that this letter will serve to warn other parents about these kind of0happen- ings. I would not want anyone'to go through this." Police Chief Pat King told the Signal - Star the incident is definitely an indecent assault. he advises parents they should talk about such an occurrence with their children and teach them how they can avoid it happening to them. Parents should emphasize that anyone, not just strangers, even a 'teenager could assault them. Parents should tell their children they are not only at risk from strangers in cars. Parents, should also tell their children there are certain areas of their bodies, •the area covered by a bathing suit, that is private and no one should be allowed to touch them there. Children should be told not to accompany someone they do not know or trust and they should never accept money or candy from someone on the condition they do something for them. Should a parent discover that their child may have been the victim of an assault, they should contact police. If they are unwilling to have their child relate the incidentto a police officer, they can contact Family and Children's Services who work with the police. If such an incident is not reported, police have no idea that it is occurring. Perhaps most important, if a child tells you he or she has been assaulted, believe him or her. Children rarely make up stories about such things. If they feel threatened, there is good reason. ' We would all like tobelieve that Goderich is a community where these things do not hap- pen, but unfortunately they do. Sexual apault can heppen anywhere. Our children need to be protected but perhaps the best protection is the knowledge of what can happen and how to take steps to avoid it. S.D. The personal touch They bring a personal touch to hospital care that hospital administration, staff and board members agree would be sorely missed if they were to discontinue their volunteer service. They also raise thousands of dollars which they donate to the hospital for the purchase of equipment. At one time some of their donations went to pay the electric bill before the days of government global budgets. The women's auxiliary to any hospital has made a considerable contribution in both time and money that most hospitals could not provide if it were not for the dedicated volunteer service of the auxiliary members. The auxiliary to the Alexandra Marine and General Hospital is no exception. Through the years they have raised money, donated equipment, provided services at the hospital but most of all brought a personal touch to patient care. Few people realize auxiliary members are at the hospital every day helping out in a quiet unassuming manner. Their contribution doesn't make the headlines that life saving surgery does but their ser- vice is very important. The community owes a great debt to these women who have given so much of their time without expecting anything in return. Volunteer service has contributed so much to communities across this country over the years and it is impossible to estimate the value of this contribution in terms of dollars. As the auxiliary to our local hospital marks its 65th anniversary, it is to be congratulated for the many years of dedicated loyal service.. A "wonderful auxiliary" as president Jean Wheeler says, they are to be commended for their contribution to our hospital and our com- munity. S.D. Can four councillors explain day. care decision to her child Dear editor, It's time to wake up, dust off and bring four of our town councillors back into 1086. Like it or not, some mothers must (and I emphasize must) work. Therefore their children need competent day care, " Due to the town eouncll vote of Monday evening, Goderich has t'ogroscd once again. 3 , • I invite WOO four to ex lMfti ley tht' year-old why she wilt HO ;0 044? ? U 4 oay LETTERS The, water's fine By Susan Hundertmar) Decision is Dear editor, After attending the town council meeting of Sept. 29, I feel compelled to express my concern and outrage ,over the outcome. An unenlightened, outdated majority of the council voted against a desperately needed municipal day care that would have been substantially funded by' a governmeht grant. I am thoroughly dismayed over the total disregard for the future of our towns' pre- school children shown by individuals on the council. The men who stymied the proposal were only interested in the financial aspects and the possible deficit factor and did not address the infinitely more important con- cern of the safety and well being of our children. It was suggested that it was feasible that the day care would in the near future be able to operate without any deficit or a negligible care facility, Maylie they can 'help' her understand and adjust to the loss of her . "0ehoo1", friends and:loving teachers.1 ea, sti!!1 tan net w and.i'veebeen Wig` alt day. t y •. , Siti erely, Myra Henry. appalling, says reader LETTERS one. With a probably subsidization from the surrounding townships this likelihood increases. Examples of other organizations who have been given higher amounts were related; such as $20,000 for the Goderich Lawn Bowling Club and $36,000,anually for salaries at the cemetery alone. The cemetery contains our past and granted it deserves our due respect but our young. children are our very important future that should be invested in, and the sum required over the years will be con- siderable less. a When asked after the vote what they thought we should do in the absence of our do in the absence of our day care, the councillors seemed to have run out of ideas. Maybe in keeping with their outdated, unrealistic attitudes we working mothers should all quit our jobs and stay at home with our offspring. Besides the inevitable overload of bankruptcy court that would' cause, Goderich would suddenly find itself without many of its hardworking contributors to our economy. My frustration over this vital issue knows no bounds. I can only hope that this unaccep- table situation can be rectified. Goderich NEEDS a day care and our children deserve the superior care that they receive in,such,a supervised environment. A Concerned Parent C. Habkirk Give the police a break, says reader Dear Editor, Read with interest the Chief of Police's reply in your paper. I have recently moved into Auburn from Mississauga and I have found the poeple here very friendly, especially my neighbours and our General Store owners. I always sit at the kitchen table to do my letter writing and I do quite a lot of it. When I glance out the window there is always a police cruiser going"by, so I can't see where they are sitting having coffee continually. Surely they are entitled to coffee breaks. I, personally wouldn't know what I would believedo if I didn't have a o and I there are a lotfee of people hot on theat do the same thing. ° I have a nephew on the O.P.P. and when all the murders and wounding was happen- ing awhile back, I'n sure his father and mother was worried sick about his welfare. One could almost say when the offenders were hell -raising, as was the headline in your paper at one printing, should we blame the police for not being Johnny -on- e-spo or the offenders that don't respect other peo- ple's property. I would just like to understand or know what "kick" they get out of vandalism. They must realize they will be caught in the act sometime. Then perhaps they won't be so smart. As the Chief said; if a person sees anything at all that looks suspicious or is off- colour, that the is time to inform his depart- ment for police protection and to investigate the same. I'm. quite sure the call would be answered. prompto. The policeman puts his life on the line each and every day when he dons his uniforms and gets into a patrol car and this is all the thanks they get from the•public after years of training. Come on people. Give them a break! ! Where would we be without our Police Department? Our• ..iinAorc of the law�mieht think they offenders law�ight they can do all sorts of things' and get away with it, but there will come a day that they will be sadly mistaken. In closing, I'd like to say, whoever ripped up our lawn had better know how to re -sod, because when the offenders are caught, they'll be busy for a few days. Instead of us- ing their wheels, they'll be using their hands because when they were doing damage to property they sure weren't using their heads, if they had one to begin with! Really boys, wasn't it childish and foolish? - This letter isn't from a young resident of Auburn, just a concerned resident wonder- ing what the world is coming to and why young people spoil a nice town like Auburn with their destructive ideas. Also, keep on having your coffee breaks, policemen. You deserve them! Sincerely, Catherine Boughton Auburn Parent issues challenge to councillors Dear editor, The decision of town council on Monday night to defeat municipal ayreAt then Goderich, was at the least - appalling. most it was irresponsible and neglectful. The Administrator, Mr. Larry McCabe put together an excellent report on this issue. While his report suggested an annual deficit of $15,000, ideas were put forth to substantially reduce this figure. While this deficit figure May alarm some taxpayers, I wonder if they realize where some of their tat dollars actually go.. Ove1r`$ 50,000 4 ear goes;into the recrea- Moil department and• $36,000 goes toward Maintaining dead people (no disrespect in- tended) through the icemetery salaries. A20,000 subsidy was given to the Lawn Bowling Club for construction costs. Also on Monday night, council voted in favor of $3,000 to $5,000 (which could manifest itself to $60,000) towards sodding the boulevards of a few blocks of town which were neglected by a developer. While these costs are certainly justified, don't you .as taxpayers feel that a small fraction of these costs should go towards the welfare of your children? While f presently ana hot a resident of the town of Goderich, as OfDec.1, I will be when I obtain possessionof a home recently pur- chased within the municipal boundaries. Therefore, as of Dec. 1, I, Brian Donald, challenge any council member who voted against the day care motion, to resign is council and run in a by-election agei "st to day p sed lf on ss issue. If the voters are care, 1 will certainly lose. d'p- But, if what I believe is true, the voters will realize that their voice is heard and t e town of Goderich will have day care r their children. We can make a difference and the time fbr change is now! Brian W. Donald Goderich