News Photo Anna Smith.
Donna Balls, Betty Aiken, and David Condon pose for a portrait with their table in the Veiner Centre on Tuesday.
asmith@medicinehatnews.com
AWARE Medicine Hat set up in the Veiner Centre on Tuesday in honour of Senior’s Day to spark discussion surrounding the realities of climate change.
The goal of the event was to educate and speak on issues on the minds of Medicine Hat’s older residents, something that member Betty Aiken felt that they accomplished well over the course of their two hour visit.
One thing that came up with several visitors, said David Condon with AWARE, was the realities of the Carbon Tax, giving them an opportunity to speak about the fact that a majority of the money returns to the taxpayer, and the rest goes into supporting agriculture, indigenous groups, and business.
“There are a number of things going on across the country with all kinds of different groups. There might be up to 60 events going on in different places for seniors day. Really, it’s all about seniors trying to make sure we pass them on to a safe and better world for the next generations, because we have some responsibility to do that,” said Aiken.
Member Donna Balas spoke briefly on the fact that there will be a financial cost to fixing the ongoing climate crisis, but stressed the importance of creating a better world for their children and grandchildren to inherit.
“The first thing is to realize, yes, is this real? And it can be overwhelming, but we need to think about it in terms of, yeah, it’s actually happening, and not put your head down,” said Balas. “Us seniors, we have time, a lot of us have enough money, and we have a very powerful voice we need to be using.”
