Re: Letter “Break-in makes homeowner feel unwelcome in Donovan,” which appeared in the Jan. 5 edition of Northern Life.

I’m very sorry to hear that your home was broken into on Christmas Eve. This sort of thing is bad at any time, but really is magnified on such a holiday.
I’ve lived in the Donovan for 5 years now, and I admit that the neighbourhood has its challenges. There are good neighbours and bad neighbours, and unfortunately, at times like these, the latter overwhelms the former.

However, I still say there isn’t a neighbourhood in this city I’d rather live in. Yes, it’s a poorer area than others, with some desperate people, and yes, that means there is crime here. But there are also a lot of good people, certainly a lot of interesting people.

You are not alone. For the first time in five years, I was recently broken into. Somebody threw a brick through our door window and took our cash box — all of $70 in loose change.

We have an alarm, and they left right away. This didn’t stop everyone living in the building from having an unsettled night.

I believe that citizens need to participate in their community. We create our own neighbourhoods by contributing to them. Some people make them worse by committing crimes, some people make them better by volunteering in the community, talking to their neighbours, or even just by fixing up their own house and yard.

Our neighbourhoods and cities are what we make them. Please don’t lose heart. The Donovan needs you.

Mark Browning
Cosmic Daves Vinyl Emporium

Posted by Vivian Scinto