Letters sent to The Premier, Minister of Education, MLA's and Quesnel School District Trustees...
22 July 2002
Trustees, School District 28 (Quesnel)
401 North Star Road
Quesnel, BC V2J 5K2
Dear Trustees,
I write to express my deep concern about your plan to
close the
Wells-Barkerville Elementary School, and to urge you to reverse this
decision.
Rural areas of this province have for some time been
struggling to survive.
Numerous cuts to local services by the provincial government over the
past
year are making it ever more difficult for these communities. While local
politicians' hands are tied in the face of many of the provincial measures,
there are actions they can, and must in all good conscience, take to
support their citizens. One thing you clearly can do on behalf of the
Wells-Barkerville community is to keep this school open.
I realize you must be faced with difficult decisions
in this climate of
severe fiscal restraint. But it should not be an option for you to force
rural families to choose between leaving their homes to move someplace
where there is a school, or staying in their communities while their
youngsters bear the burden of the bottom line by having to commute 80-miles
to attend classes. Surely, if this plan goes ahead, many residents with
elementary-age children will have no choice but to move away from the
area.
Their departure would be an irreversible blow to the community.
I am in full support of the hunger strike by artist Claire
Kujundzic, and I
understand it is also widely supported by many who believe you must reverse
your decision. I hope your response to this action will be an early
announcement that the Wells-Barkerville Elementary School will remain
open.
Sincerely,
Sandy
Shreve, Vancouver, BC
cc: Premier Gordon Campbell
Dr. John Wilson, MLA Cariboo North
Honourable Christy Clark, Minister of Education