Haldimand "Kudos to those who Dare"

Kudos to all out there who get involved! Kudos to those that publicly voice their opinions, and their concerns! Kudos to those who stay the course! Kudos to those that believe we can make a difference!

I am very passionate when it comes to supporting individuals that choose to get involved, especially, when the involvement is of a public nature. This could be speaking before your local council, or writing a letter to the editor. Most people don't get involved, but they will support "You". It is not that they don't want to be involved, it is because it is risky business to be publicly verbal. I know this for a fact!

I will give you an example; In 2004 Haldimand County Council and Staff decided to sell our Hydro Utility without informing the public. Although according to legislation, this process was to be a "public" process, council proceeded with most decisions behind closed doors. Myself and others banded together to fight to save our Utility. We were given one shot to be heard. Eleven amazing people chose to be heard at a public meeting held by council.

My point is that the eleven people that spoke that night stayed the course, our belief was that it was a bad business deal, and we never swayed from the reasons why we fought! We never made it personal! We never once thought of the consequences of being publicly verbal! We all gave a tremendous amount of our personal time, but the end result was worth the effort.

Many of the people that were involved in the Hydro Issue knew each other, some didn't particularly like one another, but that was put aside, as we all had a common goal. This was a valuable experience for me, as it proved to me that there are individuals that can set aside personal feelings to deal with business. This is the attitude that is needed to be successful.

We may not always agree with what someone has to say, or what they stand for, but what we are guilty of is not getting all the information before making a judgement. I can't totally blame the individual for this, as we deal with the facts or information that is passed on to us, whether it is via a public meeting or the press. Too often we are fed partial information, and we are forced to read between the lines. This is dangerous, as we are sometimes mislead. I have been guilty of this myself.

Now to my main point. Caledonia has been the focus for a lot of people in the last year or so, many have been praised and many have been crucified for their efforts and their public involvement. Whether it be Gary Mchale, Mark Vandermaas, Merlyn Kinrade, Toby Barrett, Tim Hudak, Caledonia residents, or anybody that has been verbal, we all have a common goal! Being passionate in voicing our opinions, staying the course, and not giving up.

"Kudos to all those who Dare" You do make a difference!