But, we can't blame the CCY

volunteers for being frustrated. Imagine how you would feel if you volunteered

to serve on the CCY. I'm sure you'd be eager to implement your plans and

ideas. Then imagine your frustration when you face six degrees of separation

in trying to communicate with the council to get anything done.

The city manager, in no uncertain

terms, stated that CCY volunteers were not to contact his office directly,

but to communicate through the CCY coordinator. The CCY coordinator reports

to the leisure programs manager, who reports to recreation administrator,

who reports to the director of leisure services, who reports to the city

manager, who reports to the City Council.

Official communication to the

council must be typed, edited and proofed by these individuals before

it is provided to council one week prior to their meeting. That's not

exactly what I would call and open flow of communication. It's no wonder

they were ineffective and felt no sense of direction!

Why is the CCY buried in the

recreation department in the first place? The CCY was originally appointed

to address the problems faced by youth in our community. Drug and alcohol

abuse, promiscuity, teenage pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases,

suicide, child abuse, etc., are not exactly recreational activities.

I'm glad to see the city is

dedicating space in the proposed community center for teen uses and programming,

but let's not continue to make the same mistakes. Recreational programs

and a community center are not going to solve the problems for our youth.

Truthfully, nothing will as long as we continue to ignore reality and

stifle communication. We need good planning. Working parents need programs

aimed at providing supervision for teens after school and during the summer.

But more than anything, we

need a sense of direction, community support, and a firm commitment by

our leaders to put our families first.

Peachtree City is a wonderful

place to raise young children or retire. It is a terrible place to raise

teenagers. I grew up here. I've seen it all. I was at school the day a

boy shot and killed himself in the bathroom at McIntosh High School. After

a week or so, no one ever talked about it again.

As a teen, I went to parties

in Peachtree City, where I saw every drug imaginable. Worse than that,

parties were supervised by liberal parents with the attitude that its

better to know the kids are safe at home drinking and getting high than

out driving around and getting arrested by PTC's finest.

As an employee of the City,

I received calls from angry parents who complained about the police "harassing"

their children. They never thought their kids might actually have been

doing something wrong. The problems our youth face every day are not unique

to Peachtree City. But, Peachtree City does provide a unique spin on things.

Many kids in Peachtree City have disposable income, easy access to each

other via cartpaths and preoccupied parents with an image to maintain.

The Fayette Family Alliance

Coordinating Teamwork, Outreach and Resources (FACTOR) is a countywide

coalition of agencies serving local families. They are new and have yet

to prove themselves. But, before the city washes its hands of its responsibility

to our youth by eliminating the CCY, we should consider being actively

involved with this group.

It would be nice if a member

of City Council would volunteer to serve on a committee and to ensure

that we don't lose sight of our community responsibilities. Now more than

ever, it does take an entire village to raise a child. (Village idiots

need not apply.)

I'm glad to hear that the Youth

Advisory Board (YAB) will continue, but in all honesty unless the council

encourages a better flow of communication and provides clear direction,

the program is nothing but lip service.

The CCY coordinator was quoted

as saying the YAB was the "voice of youth that must be represented

in city policy and recreation programs." Good luck! It is the City

Council that sets city policy, not the administration, and I'm willing

to bet the YAB will have no more opportunity to communicate with council

than the CCY unless we elect a few more people into office who encourage

open and productive communication.

Nancy Faillo Faulkner

Peachtree City

[email protected]

[Faulkner is an announced

candidate for Peachtree City Council. The Citizen welcomes letters from

candidates for all local offices and from citizens commenting on the candidates

and issues raised. We will print the letters from candidates and a representative

sampling of others subject to standard editing practices for length and

conformity to libel laws, until the week before the election.]

Back

to Opinion Home Page | Back

to the top of the page