Pubdate: Wed, 11 Mar 2009 Source: Coquitlam Now, The (CN BC) Copyright: 2009Lower Mainland Publishing Group, Inc. Contact: http://www.thenownews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1340 Author: Sonya Ahmed NOT ALL HOMELESS ON DRUGS Re: "Children would be endangered by homeless using gazebo," letter to the editor, Friday, March 6. Adele Garofano's comments regarding the Lions Park gazebo issue do not reflect a desire to potentially endanger one group of our society so we can serve another. Allowing homeless people to have access to the gazebo would not necessarily mean that there will be needles and broken bottles lying around and it certainly wouldn't harm them. By saying this, you are just stereotyping all the homeless people into one section, saying that they are all drug addicts and alcoholics -- when, in fact, most of them are kind people who just found themselves in bad circumstances. Use of the gazebo gives them somewhere dry to stay, which would be helpful, considering all the unpredictable weather we have been getting. Believe it or not, the homeless people are not out to get you and your children, and letting them use the gazebo would not be needlessly risking others. It is not "needless" to help your fellow human. It's called caring. Sonya Ahmed Port Coquitlam - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin