I am a 49-year Red Deer citizen and something came to my attention that really bothers me.
My daughter lives in Eastview and has two children. One is three and the other is seven.
My daughter has medical problems and can’t drive a car, so she takes both her kids on a bus ride every morning, which takes more than an hour, and again in the afternoon to Grandview School.
They are on a fixed income and choose to walk a lot to save money for food.
The public school board states that although she lives three km away from school, it’s not far enough for her daughter to receive a school bus trip and so she has to take public transportation.
I never liked the fact that my daughter and the kids wait outside for quite a while to catch the bus, but I suppose rules are rules and I never thought much about it.
One day I had the morning off and I decided to drive my granddaughter to school and went back to my daughter’s house for a coffee. At 9:30 a.m., a little school bus pulled up right behind her four-plex and picked the child up in the next rental in the same four-plex.
I asked my daughter where the child was catching the bus to and she said, “To Grandview School.” Now I’ve known this child for a while and although he seems to be a little bit rough around the edges, I think he’s just a little spoiled. But he is placed in a special class for behaviour problems, so every morning he gets a nice warm bus ride to and from school and he even tells my granddaughter he gets to watch movies on there, as well.
I guess my point is, why does my daughter and her family have to walk in the cold because her kids mind their manners?
Keep in mind, you can see this bus pull up every morning right out her back window.
It really makes a person think that maybe it would be better if their child acted up. Then the whole family would be treated better and stay warm.
The Red Deer Public School board needs to look at their old rules and make exceptions because, as a taxpayer, I think my family should be treated the same as others who live in the same building.
Keith Winther
Red Deer