As a pretty active volunteer, I was impressed by the quality (and quantity)
of the work that was done by award winners. I want to thank David Brauer's
for his incredible dedication to making this list work and for Steven Clift
for letting me sit at his table.{And his good work}
The idea that this costs too much and has to be eliminated really concerns me
for several reasons.
The first is that seems so small minded in a penny wise pound foolish way.
In light of the financial problems of the city it also seems to be the wrong
strategy, especially with neighborhood group funding being at risk, this is
an important time to be working on systems that enhance and reward volunteer
work.
The second is that there doesn't seem to be a city driven process that asks
what needs to be done and how do we do it?
The question should be how can we do this with little or no money?
If the city really valued its citizen's efforts, it would lay its cards and
numbers on the table- give an itemized budget and seek assistance from
funding sources.
The third is look who is out there. We get things done. Whether it is a
potluck in a church basement, a beanfeed at a park, or an event aided by
donations at the door, we have the human resources to thank our fellow
citizens.
There are other resources as well. I would love to have the neighborhood
newspapers host an awards forum.
The fourth thing that bugs me is the way this got played out at a council
meeting. In a classic case of the pot calling the kettle black, members of
the city council were berating the financial management of the Park Board
(was Target one of their Projects?)
Blaming the Park Board for the financial crisis of the city seems
disingenuous. I don't think this was Councilmember Zerby's finest hour.
In context: The award ceremony defunding was used an attention getting
sacrifice more than a well thought out piece of financial strategy.
I will work with my Neighborhood and others to find a place to thank some of
our outstanding citizens.
Thanks,
Scott Vreeland
President of the Seward Neighborhood Seward
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