Dear editor,
Your editorial of June 7th “Are Meaford Residents Suffering From Burn- Out or Apathy?” is right on the mark. Yes, apathy is mostly the result of burn-out.
The municipal branding initiative should incorporate the recommendations of the current task force that has dedicated itself to taking a long hard look at the Community and Cultural Services (which includes Meaford Hall). Since the task force meetings have been closed to the public and nothing has been reported so far, all one can do is guess what kind of community will develop from it.
The criticism that such initiatives (such as task forces and PACs) are conducted by some sort of exclusive club are not true, however, the result seems to be that council is significantly influenced by a small group of committed lobbyists, who usually get their way. Unfortunately, you are correct when you say that council often ignores the many volunteers who research and contribute ideas for the betterment of the community.
This creates apathy, burn-out, and resentment in the community.
The decisions based on the task force reports will show what kind of cultural development the council will endorse; will it be the continuation of the system installed by the former CAO or are we going to see some changes?
I know that most of the people on the task force are knowledgeable, experienced in the arts and have the very best interests of the community at heart. The question is, will they be listened to? Two members of the Meaford Hall & Culture Foundation have opted to write their own dissenting report and have already submitted it to the CAO.
The majority report will include recommendations by one of Canada’s leading cultural producers, who also happens to be a local resident - Billie Bridgman.
One of Ms. Bridgman’s recent undertakings was to advise Toronto on its cultural policy. If the City of Toronto enlisted her to make recommendations on cultural planning, one would think she is qualified to advise Meaford. Her list of professional accomplishments is too long to note here, but some highlights include Director of Fundraising for the Canada Pavilion at Expo ’86, Director of the Guelph Spring Festival, Director of Artscape Toronto, and President and CEO of the Council for Business and the Arts in Canada.
Meaford is most fortunate to claim Billie Bridgman as one of its citizens and even more fortunate to have her as one of the leading volunteers in the task force. Her professional capability and nationally recognized stature in the arts could not only help to improve Meaford’s image but also help to successfully implement a productive and profitable cultural policy for the future.
Let us hope that the efforts of the task force will not become just another farce because apathy can turn into hostility and we have had too much of it for too long.
Gita Kikauka, Meaford
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