w ww.insideHALTO N.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, N ovem ber 2 5 , 2 0 1 6 | 6 Editorial Nominate a junior citizen You don't have to look far to find the leaders of tomorrow. They are at local schools, church groups and youth clubs, already m aking a difference by con tributing to com m unity life. They are on sports teams and volunteering for organizations. They are collecting donations and supporting area charities. And they are excelling in school, m aintaining top-level grade point averages. They are extraordinary, and it' s time to recognize them. Each year, the Ontario C om m unity Newspapers Association (OCNA) -- of w hich the Oakville Bea ver is a member -- co-ordinates the Ontario Junior Citizen awards program as a way to honour and encourage youths w ho are involved in com m unity life. The program is sponsored by TD Bank Group. It' s time to m ove quickly, too, as the deadline for nom inations is Wednesday, Nov. 30. Any Ontario resident between the ages of six and 17 years is eligible to be chosen as one of the final recipients of the award. H ow can you get involved? By nom inating a youth in one of five categories: · A person involved in w orthwhile com m unity service; · A special young person contributing to his or her com m unity w hile living with a physical or psy chological limitation; · An individual w ho has performed an act of heroism in the past year; · Excellence in achievem ent, such as the arts or athletics; · Good kids w ho show a com m itm ent to mak ing life better for others and do more than is nor m ally expected of som eone their age. Up to 12 nom inees w ill be chosen as the final recipients of the award w ho w ill be invited to a ceremony in the spring of 2017 in Toronto. Each young person w ho is nominated w ill be presented w ith a certificate of recognition, and their contributions w ill be highlighted w ith an ar ticle in the Beaver. Help us pay tribute to our leaders of today and tomorrow. Again, the nom ination deadline for the 2016 Ontario Junior Citizen Awards is Nov. 30. N om ination forms are available at www.ocna. org/juniorcitizen or by calling 416-923-7724, ext. 4439. Hard copies are also available at the Oakville Beaver office, 5046 Mainway, Unit 2, Burlington, 905-845-3824. The Oakville Beaver 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, 5046 Mainway, Unit 2, Burlington ON L7L 5Z1 or via email to ablackburn@ oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. "C o n n e c t e d t o y o u r C o m m u n i t y " Oakvfle Beaver 5046 Mainway Unit 2, Burlington ON L7L 5Z1 General Inquiries: (905) 845-3824 Classified Advertising: (9 0 5 ) 632-4440 Circulation: 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington (905) 631-6095 V o lu m e54 | N u m b er 95 The Oakville Beaver is a division of ·* m e tro la n d m e d ia * * Connected to your community® Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Vice -President and Group Publisher of Metroland West Regional General Manager Advertising Director NEIL OLIVER KELLY MONTAGUE DANIEL BAIRD Managing Editor ANGELA BLACKBURN RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director Business Manager LORI ANN GZOVDANOVIC Director of Production MARK DILLS MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager Letter to the Editor Director of Distribution CHARLENE HALL KIM MOSSMAN Circulation Manager Reader takes issue with local process Today, I learned of the closed door council meeting on the Saw-Whet settlement held on May 16. I am informed we, the citizens of Oakville, are not allowed to know: ·Who attended that meeting? Confidential. ·Who put forward the motion? Confidential. ·What did the motion say? Confidential. · What was said in the debate? Confiden tial. · Who voted for and against the motion? Confidential (although when the vote was tak en at the Region it was done in public with the mention of Saw-Whet). Only on Nov. 22, did the Commissioner of Planning allow the public to be informed of the fact a vote had taken place and when that hap pened. This means when the Oakville participants presented to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) in June, they were totally oblivious of the fact the Town of Oakville had already ca pitulated and reached a settlement with the developer. This is a total and absolute betrayal of the very principles of democracy and the trust we, the citizens, place in our elected representa tives. Politicians with nothing to hide do not (a) meet behind closed doors (we're not talking national security here) and (b) do not withhold information on important meetings with public consequences from that public. It is high time for Oakville council to now demonstrate some integrity in this matter and either: (a) fully disclose what happened at that May 16 meeting, or (b) resign en masse so the taxpayers can vote in a new council. Trevor Leathem, Oakville O akvfle Beaver Proud Official M edia Sponsor For: Canadian Circulations Audit Board Member Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association I Canadian Com munity Newspapers Associatioi A c c r e d ite d LocalM ediaiiiociiuon Proud Official M edia Sponsor For: JL O n ta r io P ress C o u n c il Defending principles to inspire public trust 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 advertise ment will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. 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