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www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, November 30, 2011 · 6 OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5571 Classified Advertising: 632-4440 Circulation: 845-9742 --Open 9-5 weekdays, 5-7 for calls only Wed. to Friday, Closed weekends Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: C Canadian Circulation Audit Board Member A THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association S Suburban Newspapers of America o Canadian Community Newspapers Association ATHENA Award NEIL OLIVER Vice ­ President and Group Publisher of Metroland West The Oakville Beaver is a division of DAVID HARVEY Regional General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director ANGELA BLACKBURN Managing Editor RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution SARAH MCSWEENEY Circ. Manager No one is l left f out Christmas is a special time in which the world over seems to -- albeit after a frenzied buildup -- take a breath, share a peaceful moment and savour the miracle of hope. Have you attended any seasonal festivities... a tree lighting, Santa's arrival, the Santa Claus parade? Have you looked around at the faces in the crowd? The young anticipating Santa will make their dreams come true, the parents ensuring their little ones enjoy the fun and the seniors who sing the seasonal favourites and remember ... when they were young, when they were those parents and the holidays they spent with family and friends, many of whom may no longer be there to share the spirit with them. While we make time to share the seasonal spirit with our family and friends, many also take the time to make a donation to ensure those who need a helping hand in providing a Christmas dinner or Christmas gift can do so. We know it's important that no child goes without at Christmas. Santa wouldn't have it. We also know that even when our faces show the passage of time and we have been stamped with experience, inside, in our heart, we feel just as we once did. Age is visible on the outside, but never can bring its ravages to our heart. We also know the true meaning of Christmas. It isn't just toys or a feast that make the season brighter. It is the peace and hope that descends when the world goes extraordinarily quiet on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. It is about the goodwill that is apparent more than at any other time of the year -- symbolized for children as the hope that Santa, a jolly stranger, will watch out for them, will remember them and promises not to leave anyone out. For many of our seniors, a simple gift provided by a stranger when there are, perhaps, no loved ones near or here, brings the same hope that Santa brings to children. While they may not be surrounded by loved ones, they must not be left out. The Oakville Beaver r is supporting Children of Christmas Past, a charity that provides a gift to a senior otherwise alone in the world. We have a tree in our lobby that bears tags, each with a senior's wish on it. The tags can be exchanged for the gift outlined on it and those tokens of goodwill are to be collected just prior to Christmas and delivered to the senior who made the wish. We ask the community to share our goal of ensuring each of those wishes is granted... not really to provide a gift, but to share the spirit it represents and to demonstrate to seniors in our community who once were those expectant children and harried parents, that no one is left out, that everyone feels hope and that Santa, that jolly old stranger who is himself a senior and knows well what Christmas really is all about, doesn't forget anyone. Thank you. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. Letter to the editor Making a mountain out of a molehill wastes school time Re: Tossing a ball a `safety issue,' Oakville Beaver, Friday, Nov. 25, 2011. My daughter has attended both Gladys Speers and Pine Grove elementary schools. So I was quite excited to read this article. After reading it, I am annoyed. If I lived down the street from Gladys Speers Public School and the bus stop was moved in front of my house and the kids were playing ball there, I would be within my legal right to tell them to stop from potentially damaging my property. The children's parents would be within their reasonable right to lament that I was being insensitive to children. That kind of debate is commonplace. The fact that this debate occurred in front of a school is really not that germane; it does not warrant discussions in Toronto and Halton region newspapers. Why am I writing this letter? Because my daughter's current and former principals are probably having to waste time dealing with the fallout from these articles rather than working on matters that are much more important to their students. That is why I am annoyed. Henry M. Kim, Oakville Letters to the editor The Oakville Beaver r welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver r reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. Not everyone can afford it Re: Front page article l of f Thursday, h d Nov. 24, 2011, Transit cash fares to rise as of Jan. 1, Oakville Beaver. This is not the most suitable place to discuss whether all the citizens of Oakville can afford to pay the transit fare of $3.25 instead of $3. I would like to dissolve the historic vision that all of Oakville's residents can afford anything because this reasoning offers grounds for a false psychological atmosphere. To absorb increases in hydro bills, taxes, transit fares, etc., should not be a legitimate act taken on behalf of all the people who live in Oakville. Giuseppe Fava, Oakville Time to find another route Re: Transit cash hf fares to rise as of f Jan. 1, Oakville Beaver, Thursday, Nov. 24, 2011. We are well aware that the cost of pretty much everything is going up. Now, that being said, public transit is essential to our town -- and many of its users -- being that it is cost-effective and environmentally friendly. How about the Town of Oakville finding cost savings internally instead of f always going into people's pockets to come up with money? I would call that good, effective management. France Laberge, Oakville