Published on Monday, 19 October 2020 at 8:22:56 AM
On Friday 16th October I had the privilege of Officially Opening the new Bike Track on behalf of Council, it was a wonderful afternoon. The children were so full of life, full of excitement, they were being children.
They were racing each other, they were laughing with each other, they were picking each other up off the dirt when someone fell off or crashed their bike. They were refitting chains to the bikes of the small children; they were desperately trying to avoid crashing into the odd adult who forgot to look both ways before crossing the track.
They were comparing the amount of skin taken off in the most recent fall declaring “mine is worse than yours” before jumping back on their bikes and heading off on another lap. One young lady was heard yelling back “This is lap number 16” as she sped off around the junior track avoiding the young 2 ½ year old learning to ride his bike.
This is the Youth of Brookton.
They are learning to take risks in a safe environment, they are learning to get along with others, they are learning to help each other, and they are learning many other life lessons.
My family and I have lived here for a little over 15 years and in that time talk of a bike track, skate park, youth space has always occurred, but nothing ever happened, until now; why, I don’t know. Because today was a day that should have happened long before my family and I moved into this fabulous community.
In our time in Brookton, whenever our Youth asked “what about us” they have been met with “you don’t need that” or “there are no funds for that”, all that did was send a message to our Youth that you don’t matter as much as someone else.
Most recently through the feedback received on the back of Council’s Reserve Management Plan for the Precinct, the Oval, Pavilion, Swimming Pool and now Bike Track all sit on there where more than a few adults from our community suggested we don’t need a Youth Precinct, we don’t need a Bike Track, or “When there are more Youth then you can build it!”
Well to those critics of the Youth Precinct, that is now taking shape, what is the magic number of youth required to invest in our future? How do we look like a community that welcomes families and young people if we do not have something for them to do?
The 50 odd children at Friday’s official opening of the Bike Track would certainly agree the passion of the Brookton Noongar Youth Group to get the idea of a Bike Track up and running, and the small but significant investment by the Shire of Brookton, were well worthwhile.
The Youth Precinct is only at Stage 1, and yes there is still plenty of work to do; the fence is about to go up, the shed is not too far away, but the investment in our Youth today will pay dividends to our Community for many years to come.
Thank you to the Department of Transport, Westcycle, The Wheatbelt Cycling Collective, Bicycles for Humanity, Tim Evans, Brookton IGA, the Shire of Brookton (Staff and Councillors), but most importantly thank you to the Brookton Community for embracing your Strategic Community Plan and placing a Youth Precinct, in particular a Bike Track, firmly on the plans for the Youth of today and tomorrow.
Cr Katrina Crute
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