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6 ·The IFP· Halton Hills ·Tuesday, March 6, 2012 OPINION Belated congrats We'd be remiss if we didn't offer up a hearty congratulations to two local folks featured recently in these pages. First, congratulations to Laurent Thibault for being named the Georgetown Lions Club's Citizen of the Year for 2011. Thibault, currently the chair of the Georgetown Hospital Foundation, has never met a community group he didn't like, or so it seems. A tourism ambassador on behalf of the Halton Hills Tourism Committee, a subcommittee chair of the Town's Sustainability Advisory Committee and a member of the Georgetown Choral Society, Thibault may perhaps be best known as chair of the Halton Hills Cultural Round Table, whose mandate is to raise the awareness of the impact culture has on the community. He's one busy fellow and the town is a much better place for his civic involvement. Congratulations also must go to Joy Thompson, the now former Town Manager of Recreation Services. Thompson, after 32 years of service, retired last week following a stellar career of providing recreation programs for the citizens of Halton Hills. Study the Recreation and Parks list of programs and Thompson's fingerprints are on most of them-- especially ones that involve providing opportunities for those less fortunate, like the Canadian Tire Jumpstart program. Director of Parks and Recreation Terry Alyman, said it best that Thompson is "all about passion and compassion." While many municipalities have a `Parks and Recreation Department', we once asked Thompson why, in Halton Hills was it called `Recreation and Parks'. Her response was typical Thompson: "People before parks." Enjoy your retirement Joy. 905-873-0301 Publisher: Ken Nugent General manager: Steve Foreman (sforeman@theifp.ca) Retail advertising manager: Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@theifp.ca) Managing editor: John McGhie (jmcghie@theifp.ca) Distribution manager: Nancy Geissler (ngeissler@theifp.ca) Classifieds Kristie Pells (classified@theifp.ca) Accounting Rose Marie Gauthier Editorial Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@theifp.ca) Ted Brown: Photography (tbrown@theifp.ca) Lisa Tallyn: Staff writer (ltallyn@theifp.ca) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/sports (emaher@theifp.ca) Letters policy Letters must include an address and daytime phone number. Anonymous letters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 150 words and may be edited for content and/or length. Publication is not guaranteed. Email: jmcghie@theifp.ca Steve Nease Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 29, Georgetown, ON., L7G 4B1. Letters to the editor Young's window a nice surprise Dear editor, I cannot tell you how delighted and proud my family is of a recent display that was set up in the Young's Pharmacy Community Window. Until a few weeks ago, I had no idea such a great idea even existed. Imagine how surprised and excited my eight-year-old daughter was when she saw a huge photo of herself and others in their gymnastic outfits as part of the Halton Hills Gymnastic Centre display. Our town offers so many opportunities for our kids and our businesses are always willing to support them in so many different ways. My family thanks Young's Pharmacy for offering such a wonderful advertising opportunity to our community. W. Hawkins, Glen Williams Hospital to St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto. I would like to acknowledge the compassion, sensitivity and professionalism of the individuals from the Ornge Medical Transport team. Also I wish to acknowledge the heroic efforts made by the St. Michael's coronary unit. As per her wishes, every effort to save my mother's life was made at St. Michael's hospital. I wish to remind all medical personnel that there is no age when life ceases to be valuable. The wishes of the patient and the family require great respect and consideration. I remind all individuals to please make their wishes regarding medical treatment clear to everyone in the form of a living will or other directive. Furthermore, in the absence of these documents, I remind families they must advocate passionately for their loved ones. Linda Carrington, Georgetown ago, not just to get away from the overgrowing population and related issues (i.e. traffic, crime rate, etc.) but the higher standard of small community life that is offered. Recently we experienced help from total strangers who did not ask anything in return, but from the bottom of their heart gave help and roadside assistance. A special thank you to the father and son from the Mackay family (we hope we are spelling this correctly) who stopped and changed our tire along Hwy. 25 late on Feb. 16. Also a belated thanks to the driver of a green Jeep Liberty who helped my husband push the vehicle and insisted I stay inside with my children for safety's sake on Hwy. 7 at Silver Creek in the summer of 2009 (after many years we still remember and are grateful for this stranger's help). We want to thank everyone who are just like those everyday unnamed heroes in our community. Your help and beautiful big heart will always be appreciated and remembered. Sally Fan & Les Lumsden, Acton WEB POLL RESULTS (Go to www.independentfreepress.com) Consumer Reports has released a survey of top grievances among U.S. drivers. Which one of these top five driving gripes peeves you the most? Tailgating (38%) Texting while driving (23%) Speeding and swerving in/out of traffic (23%) Drivers who cut you off (11%) Illegally parking in a handicap space (5%) The Independent & Free Press The Independent & Free Press is published Tuesday and Thursday and is one of several Metroland Media Group Ltd. community newspapers. Editorial and advertising content of The Independent & Free Press is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Care was great Dear editor, Very recently, my active, elderly mother passed away after being transferred from Georgetown Resident appreciates `everyday heroes' Dear editor, We moved from Brampton to Halton Hills about decade