Indoor Rec Center - Letter to the Editor

[Marci Schreiber <eschreim@gritman.org>]

Hello Visionaries:

There has been speculation lately about the status of the late Bob
Hamilton's bequest and the priorities of the subsequent Hamilton Dream
Team.  According to City Council President Steve Busch, Mr. Hamilton's
desire was for his bequest "to be used as much as possible to the benefit
of young children."  (quoted from his will)

As the Co-Chair of the local Early Childhood Service Council and an
advocate for young children in our community, I've been following the
activities of the Dream Team. I can confirm that an Indoor Recreation
Center is indeed the priority of the Dream Team.  (Covering the pool is no
longer being considered at this time.)  But whether this Indoor Recreation
Center is being designed to follow the wishes of Bob Hamilton to "benefit
young children" is confusing and uncertain.

Lisa Cochran, a mother of a young child in our community, has eloquently
summed up the proceedings of the Hamilton Dream Team thus far in her
letter to the editor (see below).  Her concerns are my concerns as well.  
She just said if better than I could.  For those of you who haven't had
the pleasure of reading this letter, I hope you do.

Marci Schreiber

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WHOSE DREAM IS IT ANYWAY?

A lot of rumor, comment and innuendo is beginning to fly around concerning
the Hamilton Dream Team.  Due to the vision and dreams of the late Robert
Hamilton, we have seen the fabulous Hamilton-Lowe Aquatics Center open and
provide families with state-of-the-art interactive recreational water
activities.

However, Mr. Hamiltonšs Dreams were much broader when he entrusted Moscow
Parks and Recreation with a sizable estate, the proceeds of which were
bequeathed to benefit the young children of Moscow as much as possible.  
Before his death, he had begun discussing his plans to build an indoor
recreational facility nearby the swim center.

Since his death, Dream Teams have been established to execute Mr.
Hamiltonšs wishes to the tune of several million dollars.  That may seem
like a lot of money to most of us, but in reality, it may not go very far
when one considers the breadth and depth of planning, constructing,
operating, staffing and maintaining various facilities.  Now add the
element of a loosely worded Last Will and Testament, and you have the
seeds of potential conflict and controversy.

To see what was up, I attended last weekšs meeting of the Hamilton Dream
Team along with four other concerned citizens.  Much to our surprise, we
were ignored by the committee for the entire two hours.  No one asked what
our purpose was in attending or what we were doing there.  Did they think
we just wanted to hear about bleachers, locker rooms, storage facilities
and Jazzercize space?

Though each one of us represented differing backgrounds as it pertained to
young children, all of us were in agreement that the needs of families
with young children were not at the Dream Team table that day (nor,
apparently, have they been).  Most of what we heard discussed pertained to
an indoor recreational faciltiy to be designed and used by older children
and adults.

Therešs 6000 children in Moscow alone under the age of ten, 1100 of which
are children under five years old. At this time these youngest children
have few if any indoor recreational facilitates available to them,
critically needed in the months of inclement weather when outdoor parks
are impractical.  Does the City really expect to leave young children out
of the discussion and planning of the new indoor recreational facility?  
Tell them absolutely not!  Call or email Mayor Comstock and let him know
this is an important issue to all of us.

Mr. Hamiltonšs dream is about a legacy; a legacy to be passed on to all
our children. To disenfranchise our very youngest citizens is to act at
best irresponsibly and at most incomprehensible.

Lisa A. Cochran