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www.ufvcascade.ca
WEDNESDAY,'NOVEMBER 16, 2011
Abbotsfordmayoralcandidates SUS by-election debateissuesat ·UFV debatepresents studentswith wide varietyof options expressed
her regrets
at being
Incumbent
Mayor
George
GRACE ROMUND unable to attend and her grateful- • Peary continued to be the only THE CASCADE ness to be allowed to participate
As their campaigns draw to a close, the five mayoral candid~tes for the City of Abbotsford had one last chance to formally discuss and debate the hot topics of this year's civic election. Hosted by the Political Science Student Association, the candidates debated on issues such as the proposed public-private partnership (P3) for Stave Lake, steady increases in property taxes, and public transportation. Although the largest topic in the election by far has been the impending referendum regarding the P3 project, it did not dominate the debate only two questions posed related directly to it. There were only four out of five candidates behind the panel table Monday' night. One of the candidates, Meghann Coughlan, was unable to attend· the debate in person due to illness, but was allowed to participate in the debate via . telephone conference. She
in the capacity she did. Bruce Banman began the debate by asserting, "I want to make [Abbotsford] a great place for everyone: for elders, families, children, and future generations, especially future·generations." Mayoral candidate and UFV student, Travis Daleman was also in attendance. Daleman began as a 17-year-old newly out of high school who threw his hat into the ring to prove that there is a younger generation interested in politics. Now an 18-year-old university student, he actively participated in the PSSA all-candidates debate. Daleman used humour to his advantage throughout the debate. When explaining his opinion that the City of Abbotsford is "shoving the Stave Lake water project down our throats" he said he attempted a Google search of "Vote No for P3" and the first link in the search results was "Vote Yes forP3."
mayoral candidate to support the Stave Lake Water Project. He explained, "The reality is, however, that even though I have recommended [the Stave Lake Water Project] personally ... the decision is where it should be, it's with the public. The public is going to participate, and there will be a referendum." Mayoral candidate Gerda Peachey raised the issue of the Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports C~ntre (AESC) which she referred to as "the money-sucking pit on King Road." She said that the money spent on AESC is money wasted, stating, "Your taxed are dependent on how well a bunch of puck chasers do." The discussion of ideas between the candidates at this point in the campaign had become much more developed and indepth. The election will be Saturday November 19.
Abbotsfordfoodbank helps fill bellies and stockings be financially cripDonation made can pling. When an indimust add deduring the holi-- vidual pendants into that list of expenses, balancing day season f i 11 the chequebook can become even more difneeds for the ficult. AFB helps over people a month, rest of the year· 3000 and of those over 40 cent are children. GRACEROMUND perBecause children are
THE CASCADE such a large percentage
Year round, the Abbotsford Food Bank (AFB) helps families and individuals in the community who don't have enough to make ends meet ensure that they get the necessities for life. During the Christmas season especially, the AFB and the Christmas Bureau are hard at work to assist Abbotsford citizens in need. This is the busiest time of the -year for the AFB. As Cliff Prang, an employee and community development worker at the AFB, explained: "September through December is when people are feeling the most generous, because we are looking towards the holidays: Thanksgiving and Christmas. At Thanksgiving, I am thankful, therefore I share the abundance that I have with other people, and [at] Christmas too. The foundation of the holiday is giving, so we give." Once January hits, the amount of donations made diminishes, but what the AFB takes in between September through December fills their needs for the entire following year. The food bank is for those whose living expenses exceed their income. This is a phenomenon not uncommon to university students, whose expenses (for example, tuition, books, .etc.)
of those helped by AFB throughout the year, the Christmas Bureau ensures that those children have Christmas presents. "We sponso about 700 families every Christmas. We sponsor the families out to business, classrooms, church groups," Prang explained. Last year, 323 families were sponsored by the community directly, and 404 families were sponsored through the AFB. The Christmas Bureau supports families that cannot be sponsored at Christmas by providing food and by allowing them to come and choose gifts for their children in the Christmas Bureau toy room. The Fraser Valley Toy Run put on by the Fraser Valley Toy Run Society is one ·of the major initiatives to stock up the Christmas Bureau toy room - the event brings together motorcycle enthusiasts from all over the Fraser Valley to raise toys, cash and gift certificates for children. This year, over 900 bikers participated in the toy run, and over 1000 toys were collected. on October 16 to support the Christmas Bureau. Since the economic downturn of 2008 there has been a shift in the demographic of families assisted by AFB. In 2008, the aver-
age yearly income of a food bank user was $12,183.00. From that figure, it was calculated that after rent was paid the average food bank user had $4.53 a day to live on. By 2010, the average yearly income of a food bank user was $15,792.00, leaving individuals with $16.40 per day to live on after rent was paid. Prang stated, "The amount of people using the food bank has gone down a little bit over the years [since 2008], but only a little ... in BC the cost of living is high. There are still a lot of singleparent fan;1.iliesout there. Divorce rates continue to increase. There are a lot of families trying to do it on their own." "What continues to increase is community involvement," Prang added. "Knowing that financial pressures are high, we continue to see an increase in generosity in our city. That gives us great courage."
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STUDENT UNION SOCIETY JOE JOHNSON floated was the possibility for THE CASCADE students in resid~nce to receive
How to increase student awareness, open communication between clubs and associations and create a more cohesive student body were major points of debate at the SUS by-election all candidates' meeting _on Monday at UFV's Abbotsford campus. Candidates for VP Social, Clubs and Associations Rep, Residence Students Rep and Rep-at-Large all had the chance to illustrate their platforms and distinguish themselves from their competitors. Jhim Burwell, SUS Communications Administrator, acted as the time keeper and moderator. All candidates had similar stances on many of the issues; the main difference between candidates were in how they framed their ideas. VP Social candidate Wyatt Scott said he thinks UFV is the greatest school of all time, and that we're lucky to have so many different cultures on campus, but he sees UFV as a "teenager" that is experiencing very quick growth, a.nd said we are experiencing issues related to this. He also believes that the SUS needs to be talking with every club and association. With regards to events, fellow VP Social candidate Soderstrom believes that we need to see more consistency. He also believes that the SUS needs to do more in reaching out to student organizations, as well as to co-sponsor events with other associations. His support on the new Student Union building is based on contingencies, but he sees it as an im, portant investment. Final VP Social candidate Tuong Thai feels that it's important for the expectations of clubs and procedures regarding the SUS to be more well-known. When the question of support for the new Student Union building came up, he pointed out that the current space with which the SUS, CIVL, and Cascade now oc;cupy - as they would move to the new building - could be freed up to make new classrooms. This would help ease the wait-list for students, as new space could be allocated for them. The sole Residence Student Rep candidate Christian Doyle feels that simple communication is a great way to increase student involvement. A new idea that he
a second card, in addition to the U-Pass. Some possibilities for the card could be benefits at the local movie theatre, and more restaurant deals as well. Rep-at-Large candidate Anne Franklin brought up ways to in. crease student communication and awareness. One such way is to have small events like hot chocolate in the hallways as students pass by. The students who stop by can tell the SUS their thoughts, and dialogue for improvements can begin. Franklin would also like to see a new rail between Chilliwack and Abbotsford. Rep-at-Large candidate Cleal Harvey believes the new student building is to be a legacy of the future. He wants to take it as far as he can while at UFV. The UPass is also an issue with him, as he would like to see it changed he feels it should include extended areas towards Vancouver. Rep-at-Large candidate Shane Potter is running on being a counter-voice. Oversight is significant with him and he wants to stand up to deficits that take money away from students. While still supporting the Student Union ,building, he acknowledged that the possible $10 million mortgage is a significant amount and needs to be scrutinized with regards to every cost. The point that set apart Repat-Large candidate Greg Strickland was his call for a stronger web presence between the SUS and students. While it's great to talk to students in the hallway, h~ noted, the web is always on. He. believes that possibilities such as establishing a YouTube channel that can act in an interactive way will help inform students of upcoming events and help to create a more cohesive student body. Rep-at-Large candidate Jeannette Laberge was absent, as was Clubs and Associations rep candidate Cody Willems-Kutz. Want to make your voice heard· in student government? UFV's SUS by-election is an opportunity to choose between candidates for VP Social, Clubs & Associations Representative, Residence Representative, and Reps At Large. Polling will be conducted via my.ufv.ca between November 17 and November 23.
