Year-Round Program f or Our Senior Citizens .After nionths of plan- ning, the Whitby ]Recrea- tion Department lias an- nouniced it will imple- nient a program for the senior citizens of the Town of Whitby. The program whiiclî hias been conîprehiensive- ly designed will include a senior citizens' bowl- ing league, square danc- ing, art, and drar-na. Ceramics, cooking, knit- ting, and pastinies of ini- terest as expressed by thie senior citizens themi- selves are to follow. Thie progranm ihas been set up for end of Sep- tenîber tlîis year imp- lenientation, and there is a possibility trans- portation. will be avail- able as w ell. "I have always- feit thiat we do not do enougli- for our senior citizens,"' Assistant Re- creation Director Fred Beckett told the Whitby Free Press. We already have our annual senior citizen's week whiich is a good thing, but wc shiould extend it to run during the fulI year so that there would always be something for themn to do, then perhaps we nieedn't have a senior citizen's week. The nlew programn lias been a pet project of his. He cx- plains, "I know when 1 get to reacli that age 1 don't want to be turned out to pasture. Tiiere has always been somnetlîing for the youing people and I thîink it's only fair that considera tion for some of our older peo- ple whlo have made their contribution to society is made. 1 ike young people but they have thieir whole 1 ives in front of thiem." The idea for the com- prehiensive programn for senior citizens has been tossed around for a long timne îow, Mr. Beckett explained. There was a lot of dialogue between Mr. Gelette, and myself and then with the gener- ous hielp of people like Mrs. Mandy Crawford wc feit we could put our ideas to work. Mrs. Crawford, 'a private citi- zen, lias been interested in help for senior citi- zens for somne time, and her helpý is on a strictly voluntary basis. It is she wlîo spearheads the an- nual Senior Citizens Week for Whitby. "And we' re not going to stop here," said Mr. Beckett, "we will be add- ing more projects, and we would also like to sec one of the local news- papers carry a Senior Citizens page so that tlîey wottld be able to know what is going 0on for thiem at ail times, and also take part in feuture articles. We have a lot of talent here locally." "Many of our senior citizens, you sec just want something to do to help themselves in order to keep active. We have a lot of en- thusiasm for this pro- grani and we're going to need ail the help we can get," iîe said. 100~ -. - ~ ~ - * 1972 gentIee< Iend us YOU&ars. T/M _ Unrest anîd disc.ontent prevail ini the town of' Wlîit by. The nmunicipal coni- plex planned in 1 970 (as f*ar as is publicly known), wlîich was held back on on a split vote for two years f-inally graduated -to the two-vote majority category, and on Mon- day, May st 0on this slîaky foundation, the proposed municipal complex was approved by coLînCil. Tlîe decision tlien, if' thiings had proceeded as was hoped by thc pres- cnt town council, woLIld have cost the taxpayers nearly $1 million. Plans faltered with an Ontario Municipal Board ruling thiat the council mLl5t re- advertise to dispense with a vote of thîe ci ectors. Enougli of* the tax- paying populace ofWhit- by registercd doubts at the Ontario Municipal Board and the board sub- sequently rLled a puIblic hcaring would be hcld at the council clhambers. For the approximate nilflion dollar cash oLut- lay to Whitby taxpayers, Whiitby would receive a town hall, new police headquartersaiid a more generous space allow- ance for thie 10W in cramped headquarters, Whiitby Public Library. Most people seemed to colicLr with new headquarters for the -town police who simply miust have, to operate efficiently, more opera- tive space. Most people agreed on larger space for the library. But not at the pres- cnt town hall. - So an active group of conccrned Wlîitby citi- zens called the Whiitby Citizens Study Group, and the hundreds of supporting opposing townspeople were re- lieved wlien the Ontario Municipal Board ruled that a hcaring would be hield. The meeting was slat- cd f'or Wednesday, Sep- tem ber 13. On Tuesday, Septem ber 5 a special surprise meeting was called -by the tow n.' A lot of' things were said at the mneeting wilîi was describcd in the town's newspap)er notice as a meeting to establishi priorities on a community arena, thîe town hall, police build- ing and library. Couincil said it would erect a bLtler type build- ing at thîe site of thîe Brooklin Arena to be ready for the commun- ity'sclîildren b.y Noveîîî- ber tlîis year. Council said it would pass a bylaw immediate- ly in order to proceed with construction of the loiîg-needed new police building at the Rossland Road site, and that it would defer the town hiall ini lieu of' the areîîa for the clîildren. But somne of the tax- payers at the mieeting saw the cake tlîrough the camouflage of poli- tical icing. If couincil was defer- ring thîe buiilding of a town hall, wlîy as it ai- SO at the same meeting planning to selI hie pres- cnt town hall to the hi- brary board? How long would the council oper- ate at town hall leasing back the needed space for adnministration from their tenant. the Whitby Library? So to the hundreds of tiiose alrcady opposing the town hall, hundreds more were added. Two Continues PAGE 7 1 7 i74-.-.- , ,. - IOE*Çri#g