Benjamin Franklin stated, “Nothing is of more importance for the public weal, than to form and train up youth in wisdom and virtue.”
He concluded that wise and good youths are the strength and treasure of the country.
Years ago, I was the consulting physician for our Juvenile Services and came to know the children in “juvie.”
I discovered that most of the kids were there because of the “bad hand” that life had dealt them.
They had families who did not care for them, others who abused and neglected them and some who abandoned them.
I am sure that if you met them in another setting, you would consider them “perfectly normal kids.”
The Juvenile Services staff provides these youths with a positive role model and teaches them ways to deal with life and overcome their difficult backgrounds.
This approach has worked.
Clallam County Sheriff Bill Benedict recently stated that in the past when he took youths to the juvenile facility, he believed that a few years later, he would see them in his jail. He said that this is no longer true (“Clallam County Juvenile Justice Tax Debated,” PDN, Sept. 20).
I heartily support the proposed juvenile justice proposition on the November ballot so Juvenile Services can continue to help the kids that need them.
It is a small price to pay to help kids be responsible adults — only $1 per $1,000 purchases.
Remember, our youths will either be the burden or the assets of our future society.
It is our job to help them become assets.
Eugene F. Turner,
Port Angeles