LET THE YOUTH BE HEARD IN 2009

OSOYOOS TIMES-December 31, 2008

Staff Sgt. Kurt Lozinski, commander of the Osoyoos-Oliver RCMP detachment, shared an excellent idea with the Osoyoos Times just before the holidays.

When discussing the lack of activities for young people in Osoyoos”and the attention that issue received during the November election”Lozinski suggested that perhaps the new Osoyoos town council actually request some input from the town's young people on some solutions.

Lozinski's idea is not just simple and obvious, it's necessary.

All of the candidates in the November municipal election, including those who now make up Osoyoos's new council, addressed the need to make this town a better place for its young people.

(And we're not just talking about teenagers and high school students. The term young people also applies to young families and anyone in Osoyoos under the age of, oh, let's say 35.)

But most of the ideas put forth by the candidates weren't very specific and often felt more like political posturing than heartfelt interest.

Giving Osoyoos's younger crowd some say might just give our leaders some direction on the issue.

Because it's not just an issue of getting kids off the streets on Friday and Saturday nights and keeping them out of trouble.

(And kudos to the Town's Recreation Department for the Friday night activities they already offer to give kids something to do.)

It's also an economic issue.

Unless you want to hang out in a bar every night of the week, there's not much else for young people to do here, especially in the winter, so many will head out of town and spend their money elsewhere, or stay home.

So, couldn't our council get some thoughts on how to make the town more interesting and attractive for young people from young people and then take those ideas to the Recreation Department, Destination Osoyoos and the South Okanagan Chamber of Commerce and have those organizations help make the ideas a reality here?

Again, it seems like a pretty simple idea.

At the same time, there will be just as much onus on the young people of this community to think of and come forward to council with some good ideas.

Complaining about the lack of things to do here but not doing anything about it won't help.