Opinion

Volume 76 Issue No.23

TheReview Wednesday, June 6, 1990

Class of 1990:

Giving the responsibility back

It’s disgraceful that the graduating class at Parkland
Secondary School has become divided — caught in an
escalating emotional turmoil that forecasts a dismal end.

With final exams approaching, senior students are bogged
down with the options involved with celebrating the
culmination of 12 years of hard work.

Students have leamed more than reading writing and
arithmatic.

The majority have become young adults, capable of taking
responsibility for their own actions and accepting the
consequences.

We recognize that the whole issue of wet/dry grad has been
beaten to death, but the bottom line on the whole issue has
become a question of respect.

An overwhelming feeling at the school is that something
was taken away from the graduating student body. They feel
bitter and insulted. After 12 years of fighting for the right to
control one’s own destiny, at the last minute it was stolen.

The students of Parkland School didn’t form a Grad
Committee for nothing.

It was to be their party, celebrated in a traditional manner
— together as comrades who endured hot classrooms, cold
rain on Nitnat trips, hours of boring lectures and thousands of
tender moments during those formative years.

Many members of the class will move away in the fall, on
to colleges, universities and the big cities — making the way
along the path of life.

One night to be together, in a completely social atmos-
phere, with the triumph of accomplishment still sweet in
mind is a beautiful thing.

It’s getting closer to the big day. Emotions have been
running hot about the whole incident for too long.

Before it’s too late, give the responsibilty for the
celebration back to the people who were elected to manage it.

The student’s grad committee is the only official represen-
tative of the entire graduating student body.

The power that was stolen from the committee should be
retumed. =.

Parents must respect the students’ democratic nght to
celebrate in the manner they deem responsible. Let’s not give
the Class of 1990 bad memories to look back on.

Literacy:

Being literate is something most everyone takes for
granted, especially newspapers.

But the ability to read, comprehend and write well enough
to live effectively in the information age is sometimes
difficult for those who run into obstacles at a young age.

One survey estimated 5 million Canadians are functionally
illiterate. We think its important that mainstream society is
aware of the problem — hopefully aware enough to do
something about it.

This week, the first of a three-part series looks at literacy,
We hope it draws attention to a pressing problem.

YOU'RE SURE:
* JUST AN OVERNIGHT
STAY..."

WELCOME TO

M¢ DONALD
ie ARIK

CAMPGROUNDS, | SS
: t— vv
Ss | 4——INA S
QEGON BUEY Go

Letters to the editor musi be
signed and contain the writer's
address and telephone number.
Letters should not exceed 500
words in length and may be edil-
ed for clarity, legality or taste.

Serving The Saanich Peninsula
Since 1912

9781 2nd Street
Sidney, B.C V8L 4P8

or PO. Box 2070

Sidney, B.C V8L 355

Second Class Mail Registration #0128

656-1151
Publisher: Vic Swan Editor: Glenn Werkman
AN ISLAND PUBLISHERS NEWSPAPER

Record broken

Editor:

As co-ordinator for the annual
Multiple Sclerosis Carnation cam-
paign, I would like to publicly
thank all the organizations for
their co-operation and participa-
tion in making this years’ cam-
paign the most successful to date.

Special thanks to my fellow
realtors and Kiwanians for their
tremendous support, along with
our younger participants; Second
Sidney Girl Guides, Sidney Signal
Army Cadets, Admiral Budge
Cadets and Navy Cadets for their
canvassing and distribution of car-
nations for the Sidney area. Their
efforts proved invaluable.

Sidney can be well proud of
breaking last year’s record of
$1,890 to a new record of $2,435
which helped to bring Vancouver
Island’s grand total to more than
$70,000.

Last but certainly not least, my
very special thanks to all those
who wore a carnation signifying
their support for Multiple Sclero-
sis, a most worthy cause.

Sometimes it’s the little things
we do that bring the greatest
reward — helping our fellow man!

Doug Anderson
Sidney

Thanks to crew

Editor:

I wish to thank the Town of
Sidney Public Works employees
for the speedy recovery of my two
son’s bikes which were left over-
night at the Sidney Little League
ball diamond and later taken from
there May 18.

I wish in particular to thank Al
for all his help in the recovery of
the bikes.

Joan Cox
Sidney

Games gamble
worth opposing

Editor:

I thought that your editorial
concerning the Commonwealth
Games was well argued and well
titled, (Commonwealth Games:
Gambling on success, The Review,
May 30).

Entrepreneurs are entitled to

gamble for success and, if fortun-
ate, receive the benefit from doing
so. Governments are not theoreti-
cally entitled to gamble with the
monies received in trust unless
approved of by referendum.

Persons who belong to neither
should certainly not be entitled to
gamble with monies afforded
through the public treasury.

When the city of Victoria tried
to pass a referendum for public
works it was soundly defeated. The
expense of the Commonwealth
Games to Victoria, British Colum-
bia and Canada as a whole will
dwarf the amount already turned
down by the public.

Here, then, is the paradox. When
you ask the electorate if they wish

_to spend large amounts of money

on public works they say “No”,
but if you do not ask them, you are
quite at liberty to spend over twice
as much by making agreements
with its representatives. Worse
still, the facilities envisaged are
not for the benefit of the average
tax payer, and will not be located
in the community of tax payers.

Those who justify the expense
by suggesting the province and
county will bear the majority of
the cost are dangerously self serv-
ing and extremely naive. Canada is
after all a sum of its parts, already
in a hole.

I hope North Saanich and Sid-
ney will continue with their oppo-
sition to this poorly conceived
idea by the Victoria body of big
spenders.

Simon Deane
Sidney

Clear the table
for C. Saanich

Editor:

Please allow me to make a
minor amendment to the quote
that you correctly attribute to me,
regarding the Recreation Commis-
sion’s preparedness to “sweep the
table clean” if Central Saanich
wants to get involved (Report sug-
gests C. Saanich fund Panorama,
The Review, May 9).

The quote was included in your
report on a public meeting where
the Central Saanich recreation
study was discussed, May 1. The
quote, out of context, may lead
your readers to an incorrect con-
clusion.

Discussion at the public meet-
ing centered on the enhancements
being considered at the Panorama
Leisure Centre. The statement
“sweep the table clean” referred to
putting all previous enhancement
plans aside and starting fresh with
the involvement of Central Saa-
nich.

Brian Sibley

Chairman

Peninsula Recreation
Commission

Room wouldn't be

without the Friends ©

Editor:

The Friends of the Sidney and
North Saanich Library are
opposed to any change in
current community use of the Nell
Horth meeting room.

The very existence of the Nell
Horth Room came about through
the refusal of Friends and others to
allow the room to be eliminated
from the original plan for the
library, to cut building costs.

In the years 1980 to 1981 we
fought to ensure that our library
had a public meeting room. The
need for such a facility was recog-
nized then by the community and
our efforts to ensure that it
remained in the library plans were
supported by the residents.

Our community still has need of
a public meeting room, and we ~
know that we have the support of
the community in saying no to any
scheme to transform the room into
office space or to other use. The
room belongs to the residents of
Sidney and North Saanich, not the
regional library; it is the residents
who will say how that room will
be used.

If the library has need for more
space for direct public service or
for offices, the Friends are pre-
pared to work with the library
management and staff in develop-
ing plans for constructing addi-
tional space.

We will actively support the
library in achieving its needs to
provide the community with high
quality service. We do not support
any. solution to the library's space
problems that denies this com-
munity access to the Nell Horth
meeting room.

We understand from comments

in The Review that the task of
Continued on Page A9