Letters to the Editor

SIR, - I feel that I have the right to reply to two letters published in the Gazette of June 17 regarding the opening of the nature reserve at Addingham and its dedication to the D-Day landings anniversary.

In reply to the letter from Mrs Haynes in America, there was no intention to ignore her father, or his part in the landings. I did ask for a veteran to attend and perform the opening ceremony, but none cam forward and, though people in the village gave me the names of two persons, no-one named her father.

I think that had she seen the whole of the Gazette of June 3, with the two-page coverage of the D-Day landings, she would have contacted her father to tell him about a veteran being wanted for the opening.

Or had Mr Kettlewell himself seen it, he would have contacted me, or even someone who knew of his involvement in D-Day.

I do not know Mr Kettlewell, but I may have seen him in the village and had no idea that he was a veteran of D-Day. Had I known I would certainly have asked him to perform the opening ceremony.

As no-one had contacted me by the Saturday afternoon, I asked the only D-Day veteran I knew to ask if he would do the honours. He declined, saying that it should be someone from the village. However, when I told him that there had been no reply to my request for a veteran, he agreed to do it.

I can assure Mrs Haynes and Mr Kettlewell that there was no intention to ignore or insult anyone with the choice of person to open the site.

In fact, the comments in the two letters have spoilt for me what was meant to be a meaningful and memorable day.

Coun DANNY PALMER

4 Abbey Close,

Addingham

Art fine

SIR, - I write in reply to the letter from J K Murray, 'Archaic art' in your columns on June 24.

Apart from an insult to Leslie Simpson, I object to J K Murray's comments. People have drawn and painted from time immemorial, and I am sure they always will.

Whilst I agree there is room for contemporary art, particularly digital photography and computerised images, new media will not replace or supersede traditional art forms. The process of producing the art work gives both pleasure and satisfaction whether spending a whole day painting one picture or taking a series of photos.

Why does J K Murray think that art is something that has to be rushed!!

As for J K Murray mentioning Damien Hurst and Tracey Emin, I can't think of any liveliness in dead animals and an unmade bed!

In July 2000, whilst living in Guiseley, I started an art club. I felt there was no local facility for people such as myself, who had perhaps painted previously but needed a kick-start into taking it up again. I placed an advert in the local paper and the library, and my phone never stopped ringing. This week we have our annual art exhibition at the Methodist Chapel, Oxford Road, Guiseley.

We now have 50 members and growing with ages ranging from 40 to 80, both men and women. It's a place where people can meet, have refreshments and use a variety of media. We also have outings and demonstrations from invited experts in their field.

Joan Hobson (Mrs)

107 Leeds Road,

Ilkley.

Esther's plea

SIR, - Here is an idea for any of your readers who are fit, energetic and love children. Would you consider running the Great North Run 2004, which takes place on Sunday, September 26, to raise desperately needed funds for ChildLine - the free helpline for children and young people?

Each day around 520 local children call ChildLine Yorkshire and North-East but sadly, lack of funds means that only half of them get through to the comfort, advice and protection that our volunteer counsellors offer.

By choosing to run for ChildLine, readers can help us answer more calls and make a real difference to the children, saving lives and protecting them from pain.

If you can raise at least £250 sponsorship to enter the race, this will help us to answer more than 70 calls from children who often have nowhere else to turn. Help keep ChildLine on track, and ring 001130 244 4004 for a sponsorship pack and entry form.

It is only with the generosity of people like your readers that we are able to offer our vital service to children in Yorkshire and the North-East.

On behalf of the desperate children who call, thank you for your support.

Esther Rantzen

Chairman,

ChildLine.

Unsung heroes

SIR, - May I, through your correspondence columns, thank those people in the Ilkley area who have sent me their congratulations and good wishes on my being made an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List?

I have been especially touched by the many past colleagues, pupils and their families who have sent messages. My thanks go to my friends in the Ilkley Soroptimist Club, membership of which first gave me the opportunity for international service, and to that happy band of devoted volunteers at the Ilkley Talking Newspaper.

Week after week, with the co-operation of the Ilkley Gazette, they prepare tapes and select items; they read, record, copy and distribute Talking Newspapers in Menston, Burley, Ilkley and Addingham. They are the unsung heroes...and heroines of this community service.

On my own behalf and that of our 'listeners' for whom their Talking Newspaper is a vital link into their community, I say 'thank you' for these years of support and service and look forward to many more to come.

Elizabeth Hughes

Soroptimist International of

Ilkley,

Chairman,

Ilkley Talking Newspaper,

22 Hillcrest Avenue,

Silsden.

Shop danger

SIR, - The next time you go shopping, think about this: every minute of the working day a shopworker is attacked, threatened or verbally abused.

An alarming but real statistic from retail industry research. Offenders include shoplifters trying to evade arrest, but also aggressive and abusive customers.

This will strike a chord with many of your readers - those who either work in shops or have friends or family who work in shops. The retail sector employs 11 per cent of the working population in the UK (2.7 million people).

Most customers are fine, but there are some who push things too far. Because, contrary to popular belief, the customer is not always right.

The sad reality is that many shopworkers now consider abuse and threats as 'part of the job', as it happens regularly, often daily, in many shops and stores.

In too many cases, shopworkers suffer physical attack and injury when they are simply trying to do their job. A large number also suffer long-lasting psychological and emotional effects from being threatened or attacked.

There are many shopworkers who go to work in fear of being a victim of violence.

The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (Usdaw) is taking a stand against this rising tide of attacks, threats and abuse. As part of our campaign, called Freedom From Fear, Usdaw has organised a Respect for Shopworkers Week, which runs from July 5 to 11.

I hope your readers will show respect to shopworkers, and acknowledge their hard work and pivotal role in local communities. Our members will be staging events in many towns and cities (more details are available at www.usdaw.org.uk).

If readers see an Usdaw campaigner, I would ask them to spare a minute to talk to them about the issue and show their support. No-one should go to work in fear of being a victim of violence. Attacks, threats and abuse are not part of anyone's job.

John Hannett

General Secretary,

Usdaw,

188 Wilmslow Road,

Manchester.

Thank you

SIR, - I would like to thank the Ilkley Gazette and Npower for the tickets I won in the Test Match competition run by your paper.

I took my cricket mad five-year-old to his first Test Match at Headingley on the Sunday and we both had a wonderful day.

The seats were in an excellent position, the weather was glorious and England's performance lived up to the occasion. Many thanks from us both,

Keith and Daniel Revis

34 wellfield Lane,

Burley-in-Wharfedale..

Scouts' view

SIR, - Is it the Scouts or the parish council which is locked in a war of words?

From the outset the Scouts were led to believe that alternative premises would be provided, the very strong implication being that the PCT would provide the finance.

Unfortunately all communication between the parish council and the Scouts, until the Notice to Quit, was informal and unofficial. Sadly this turned out to be duplicitous and precipitate.

The Scouts said right at the start they were fully supportive of new medical facilities for the village. They also said that if required to vacate the site they must have alternative premises for the weekly meetings of 60 Beavers, Cubs and Scouts. The Scout hut was self-built more than 30 years ago and has been maintained by the group ever since.

J Martin Ellis

Chairman,

Addingham Scout Group.

Tribute paid

SIR, - I can't let this week pass without a few words of thanks to Mr Robert Metcalfe of Wharfedale Office Training.

An old school motto comes to mind, "Tempora mutantur, et nos mutamur in illis." - Times change and we change with them.

Some 12 years ago, following a career change, I was advised to become computer literate if college were to be attempted again. Love them or hate them computers are here to stay and quality training units few and far between.

I required somewhere close at hand as travel to Leeds or Bradford was out of the question. Whether by luck or management Wharfedale Office Training had recently opened in Ilkley and I became one of Robert's first students, upgrading as time went by from mouseless computing and electric typewriters to the Internet and much of what we take for granted today.

Many projects in Ilkley and across the globe would not have been successful without his assistance, guidance and use of equipment, Wildlife conservation and Project Darwin, later to become Ilkley's millennium Green, to name but two.

No doubt Robert's many thousand students across the country and beyond will have similar tales to tell. I believe I speak for fellow students in wishing him good luck and all the very best in his new ventures.

Frazer Irwin

Queens Road,

Ilkley.

How long?

SIR, - As a regular commuter from Ilkley to Keighley I am amazed and irritated by the length of time it is taking to complete the roadworks on the road from Addingham to Silsden, near the bypass roundabout.

I am sure my fellow travellers would welcome the following information:

Which local authority commissioned the work? Was it competitively tendered? What was the quoted price? How many weeks were quoted to undertake the work?

Is there a penalty clause for late completion? Why are there not more men on the job and why are they not working overtime and weekends to minimise inconvenience and disruption? Can anyone provide answers to these questions?

G L Black

Austby,

Ilkley.