VOICE OF THE TOWNSHIP
I, like many of you, can remember when gas was only a small part of our budgets. Things have really changed, haven’t they?
Rising gas prices have a big impact on all of us, but particularly on low-income residents of Wayne Township. Persons with lower-paying jobs have to spend a bigger part of their earnings on gas to get to work or they must find alternative forms of transportation.
The high cost of gas caused me to decide to dust off my brother’s old Schwinn and participate in Bike to Work Day on May 16. Deputy Trustee LeRoy Page and some of my staff agreed to participate too.
I wanted to ride my bike to work to highlight the problems lower income workers have getting to their places of employment when they either do not have cars or cannot afford to put gas in their vehicles. More and more people are faced with having to ride their bicycles or walk to get to work.
One of the problems we had to deal with when riding our bicycles to work was how to get to our Downtown office from my Southeast neighborhood. I could find no safe and easy route for me to bike to Downtown. No bike paths or bike lanes are available, and many of the streets are busy and dangerous for bicycles.
And, then there are issues with the weather. Biking in the rain or snow is not pleasant, at least for me. Yet those who ride their bikes or walk to work must deal with changing Indiana weather.
Many more bicycles are expected to be on the road this Summer. I hope our community will continue to build trails to make biking to work safer. And, I hope drivers will be more alert and careful to watch out for bicycles on the road.
I had the pleasure recently of attending the Allen County Council on Aging luncheon celebration of Older Americans Month. The group honored Ben GiaQuinta, who spent many years in the Indiana Legislature, after having been elected when he was in his 60s.
The Allen County Council on Aging offers numerous helpful services to seniors in our community. One of the programs that impressed me was the TeleCare Program, which involves making a phone call to seniors each day to check on them.
This may not sound like much to some people, but it is so important to seniors who live alone. If the seniors have a problem and need help, this daily phone call could literally save their lives. It gives seniors peace of mind and lets them know we care about them.
I enjoyed the Waynedale Memorial Day Parade so much last year and was honored to be able to participate again this year. The Memorial Day Parade gives me the opportunity to meet many wonderful Waynedale residents. And, at the same time, I am able to show my respect for our veterans, as well as those currently serving in the military and their families.
Happy Memorial Day to all of you!
Richard A. Stevenson, Sr.
Wayne Township Trustee
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