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Letters to the editor

Reclaiming our children Editor, We write on behalf of many families in this province, who like ourselves, are losing their children. Readers would have heard about the 14-year-old runaway girl in the Vancouver area in late January.

Reclaiming our children

Editor,

We write on behalf of many families in this province, who like ourselves, are losing their children. Readers would have heard about the 14-year-old runaway girl in the Vancouver area in late January. But did they read the comments the following day by Executive Director of the Children of the Street Society saying there is no way for the police, social workers, or parents to force a child of any age to do something if they refuse?

Squamish families may have heard a similar theme when they attended the Communities That Care second education session on crystal meth use. A mother told the poignant story of her powerlessness to stop her young daughter's use of this devastating drug. Some young teens leave home because they want to live without rules. Older males seduce vulnerable young girls with promises of freedom from parental restrictions. Frequently these young women drop out of school and experiment with drugs and possibly other criminal activities.

In this province, there are no avenues for the parents to reclaim their children. They are advised to undertake counseling through the Ministry of Children and Family Development. However, it is not mandatory for the minor to participate in these sessions. Parents have no right to intercede and remove their daughters from dangerous living environments.

We do not allow minors to drive unrestricted, drink or vote. However, we do permit them to live in such unhealthy arrangements. Some form of authority must be developed that can intervene on behalf of our young females' safety. Early intervention by an authority figure may be enough to tip the balance in favour of the family.

If you share this concern, please add your voice by writing to The Chief newspaper, the Ministry of Family and Children (8th floor, 1177 W. Broadway, Vancouver, B.C., V6H 1G3) and call the Howe Sound Women's Centre at 604-892-5748 to add your name to a contact list.

Pina Favaro and Elsie Anderson

Squamish

Trails needed on the west side too

Editor,

In my travels around town, I hear a lot of support for theconcept of a valley trail from one end of town to the other. Butfrom Downtown to Brackendale, such a trail needs to be built on the west side of the highway (not on theeast sideas is proposed as part of the highway expansion), with east side connectors to Valleycliffe (and on to the Chief/Shannon Falls), Brennan Parkand Garibaldi Estates/Highlands.

The reason? It's simple. The trail has to run through the neighborhoodsof Downtown, Dentville, North Yards and Brackendale, and past the schools in this valley, the majority of which are also on the west side of the highway. Otherwise, people will not use this trail to get around town or go to schoolby self-propelled means.

One-third of all children in Canada are overweight, as are two-thirds of all adults. Let's encourage people to make it part of their lifestyle to cycle and walk around town by running a valley trail through their neighborhoods and right by the schools.

If any members of Squamish Council or the Planning Department are interested in leaving behind their boardrooms and desks for a few hours and looking at this from a practical perspective, join me for a bike ride around town and we can identify issues and come up with solutions without even having a meeting or commissioning consultants to do a study. Just let me know, and if you don't have a bike, I'm sure that the good folks at one of our stellar bike shops can rent you one.

Ron Enns

Squamish

What went wrong at Woodfibre

Editor,

In my opinion, our Canadian frontier mentality has prevented us from working out a deal that would have avoided the uprooting of all those families at Woodfibre. Problems are solved by the people pulling together, not by drifting apart.

A small payout and a basic, open discussion, could have allowed the pulp mill to keep operating; a discussion basic enough for you and me to understand it.

Why didn't it happen?

We lack the skill of thinking plainly, we still think in our old frontier mentality; a mentality that has no validity in our present interconnected world.

As a British politician once said: we are no longer rich, it is time to start thinking.

Ernesto Garcia

Upper Squamish Valley

The arts are alive

Editor,

In the last week (Feb. 26 to March 4) I have been treated to an incredible variety of display and performing art - in Squamish.The display of arts and crafts at the Wild At Art exhibit at the Adventure Centre was truly astounding. This is a testimony to the incredible talent residing in Squamish. In the week subsequent to the Wild At Art event, this was a common comment I heard repeated many times.

The, this last Saturday, our family had to privilege of being entertained by the My Favourite Broadway production. Again, incredible talent, especially when you consider this was a cast of about seventy people ranging in ages from children to adult - all in beautiful harmony.

Thank you to the organizers and volunteers of Wild At Art and the producers of My Favourite Broadway. You helped showcase the incredible talent of Squamish.

Perhaps, through the 2010 Games, we'll be able to massage the building of an Arts and Cultural Centre, so that we can become more than just the first event of the Games: the 20-km dash.

Bob Brant

Brackendale

Squamish Days seeks new volunteers

Editor,

I am writing on behalf of the Squamish Days organizing committee. We are looking for volunteers to join our committee. 2007 is the 50th anniversary of Squamish Days! We need new people with new ideas to join our group to help us adapt to our changing community and keep this wonderful festival strong and successful, not only for this year, but for the next 50!

If you are a person who has grown up here and has great memories of Squamish Days, or if you are a newcomer who has new ideas and perspectives, we would love to hear from you. If you are interested, please call me at 604-898-3755, or email at Alma LewisSquamish

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