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Letter: Abandoned responsibility

"We are losing sense of the responsibilities that come with bringing a child into the world..." ~ Malcolm Haynes
2609_letter

I saw the article on the plans for food support and I am appalled [“School District 47 provides nourishment for students in need,” September 2]. Appalled that, despite all the financial support provided to parents, the concepts of nurturing and love, and the inherent responsibility of providing nourishment to children they bring into the world, are abandoned on any scale.

From the time of birth to the age of 18, a parent in the tax brackets being referred to in the article gets over $675 each month, for each child, of tax-free payment from the federal government. On top of this, the province pays them at least $55 a month. These are child benefits, intended to meet the costs of raising the child.

What does it cost to provide a nourishing breakfast, an evening dinner and either a lunch or packed lunch? $15 a day is a generous estimate, and that could be said to also include costs of hydro. So a maximum of $450 a month from that tax-free amount (and this excludes any benefit that might come from food banks or the like).

I reiterate, the parent gets these payments as child support, so my question is, why are they failing to give adequate nourishment as a priority for the child they are meant to also nurture and love.

And now School District 47 has to provide another level of costly support, and not just the school system, but countless other corporate and charitable organizations that also contribute specifically to children’s needs.

We are losing sense of the responsibilities that come with bringing a child into the world, tending instead to abandon the principles of love and nurturing and the daily provision of nourishment. And this despite the overly generous financial support which, let us not forget, comes at a real cost to other citizens, and with little accountability for the parents who are failing.

Malcolm Haynes
Powell River