HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0067.010 2006-2008 1-4-0~
Hawaii County Council Meeting Zry~Z Jftta y fl~ $
Regarding Bi11345
Testimony against ~ ' ' '
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I am here today to speak against Bi11345. I am not here to speak against the obvious and
justified concerns in regards to pazking, traffic, cesspool, septic tank and residential
overloads that will without a doubt negatively affect neighborhoods.
I am here to challenge the goals and objectives of the programs seeking the enactment of
this bill. I do not think it is realistic to gather eight or less unrelated people with varying
challenges together with an undetennined number of therapists and changing shift
substitute parents under one roof under the auspices of normalizing their living situation.
I will not criticize Bill 345 or the program seeking zoning changes without offering what
I consider to be a positive alternative which will not intrude upon nor overload
neighborhoods and the utilities therein. I am in agreement that people with challenges
should be in homes in neighborhoods although I do not think that grouping problems
together assists in overcoming the problems. I believe those with special needs be placed
on loving, secure homes in neighborhoods and that group therapy sessions be attended as
needed.
To validate my belief in helping those with special needs, I retired from 36 years of
teaching special needs children in Hawaii from 1966-2002. I am and have been involved
with a wide range of volunteer special needs groups and I adopted two special needs
students and am guardian of another who was in my class and has been the light in my
family for the past 6 yeazs. I am proud of these three boys I have been blessed with
raising and am extremely proud of what they have become. My boys were not babies
when their parents asked for help in raising them. They were age 10, 11, 12 years old.
The ten year old is now 43, the 11 year old is now 44 and the 12 year old will be 19 in
February.
I advocate true families not one weekend parent, one day parent and stiil yet another
evening parent... this is not a stable nurturing environment in which to flourish. I believe
such a proposal is obviously setting itself up for failure both in neighborhood overload as
well as in unnatural grouping and parenting.
Thank you for the opportunity to express my thoughts in regazds to speaking against Bill
345 and advocating for true family settings with stable, loving, committed parents along
with therapy groups or individual counseling as needed
Gwynn Sosa
5'6Y 3 330
Comm. No. 7•
Ref. ion
Ref. bate JAN 4 20QT