LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
System fails victims of Saskatchewan shooting RE: SASKATCHEWAN SCHOOL SHOOTER GETS LIFE IN PRISON, MAY 9 BY THE CANADIAN PRESS
Again, the Canadian justice system sticks its head in the sand.
This man, who was a young offender at the time, but must be older than 18 now, killed four people and received one sentence of life imprisonment. He’s serving one prison sentence for all the crimes? So once more, the question begs to be asked: which three murder victims didn't matter?
Seems like our system is saying that if you kill one, you might as well kill several, because there is no extra punishment.
And possible parole after 10 years?
Such justice is an atrocious abomination and still needs to be changed!
Peter Dowhaniuk St. Catharines
Falls roads a disgrace
Every major road crisscrossing Niagara Falls is plagued with broken, uneven, cracked pavement, depressed service covers, potholes and deteriorating asphalt patches. It is like driving on a torture track.
Add the slalom cross you need to weave around the depressions and holes and driving in Niagara Falls is not a pleasant experience. CAA Niagara just finished its annual worst roads survey and Drummond Road came out as the worst road in Niagara. Yet just before the announcement, the city said it is going to fix Drummond and Dorchester over the next 10 years.
Did I read that right? Does this mean too bad for the rest of the city? The city has recently stated that the estimate to fix Dorchester is short so it will be taking money from some federal tax source. OLG gives Niagara Falls tens of million of dollars a year. My understanding is that those millions were to be used for infrastructure. Roads are an integral part of infrastructure.
The city should be ashamed of the condition of Niagara Falls roadways. One wonders which infrastructure pockets these millions of dollars are going into.
Jim Collacott Niagara Falls
Recognizing community boosters
On May 9, we attended Croatian National Home’s (CNH) dinner and elimination draw. This is one of those win-win-win events: for the organizers, the attendees and the recipients of the proceeds.
The fact it was again a sellout tells you something of its success. The fact it was the 37th annual attests to its longevity. The fact 300 people celebrated friendship, fellowship and fine food speaks to its legacy.
When the CNH held its 50th anniversary celebration in 2016, it was able to report to members that over the years it has donated $70,000 to Welland groups and projects through this fundraiser; that number has now reached $74,000. The annual gifting is a philanthropic record of which this group should be proud.
They are not alone. Multicultural Welland had many ethno-cultural groups over the years and many were committed to fundraising for community groups and projects. Some of these groups include: Ukrainian Cultural Centre, St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic Church, Casa Dante Lodge, Filles d’Isabella at Sacre Coeur Church, Branch 558 Polish Legion, Polish Community Centre, Ukrainian Labour Temple, and others. Some are still functioning but sadly, others are gone due mainly to declining membership. These good people, over the years, donated thousands and thousands of hours of personal time, working selflessly to make their community a better place. They do it out of the spotlight of public attention and recognition. My point is to show recognition for these community boosters and to celebrate them while they are still here, anyone who has followed their activities over the years knows they are so deserving. They will not be here forever, sad to say. As community, we will be poorer in many ways when they are no more.
Joe and Bernadette Barkovich Welland
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