| stafford |
| i know - there's not a lot to say about stafford. but as it's where we are most of the time, let's try and make it interesting! |
 |
| FAMOUS STAFFORDIANS |
| Here's who Stafford's got to be (in a way) proud of... |
| Trolley Molly Now as scary as she looks, Molly will give you a smile if you're on your own and you catch her eye. She's lucky really, she's Stafford most famous woman! (However, I did see her drinking some kind of yellow liquid from a disinfectant bottle once. Whether or not it was disinfectant, whiskey or pee I'm not sure. that was scary!) |
| Sinbad You're bound to see this guy sooner or later, he used to stand in the window of Andy's Records, opposite the market entrance, and dances, headbangs, mimes and pretents to play instruments along to the music. I don't think HMV will let him do it. Always with his big grey bushy hair, sometimes in sunshades... |
| Tourette's Woman This one's a rarer sepcies, and whether she really has got Tourette's Syndrome or not I have no idea. She just walks around swearing at teenagers and throwing her shoes at people. She's a good laugh if you keep to a 20-metre distance! |
| St. Mary's Articles |
| Letters to the newsletter... here's the full story/argument thing that's been going on to date... |
| Great work by our street cleaners |
| From Gillian M Caldwell HAVING walked through St Mary's churchyard to the beautiful Soup Kitchen, we passed throngs of youthful students in their vibrant attire. Yes, there was litter on the grass and also in the bins. Leaving the Soup Kitchen a little while later, all was spick and span. Even the bins had fresh bags. How wonderful to see the work of Kevin and Pete who work to keep our town cared for. they deserve conngratulations. Who are Kevin and Pete? they are the borough council street cleansing operatives. |
| From Mrs J Glass WHAT is happening to our town? At 3.30pm recently, my husband and I decided to go and sit by St Mary's Church as it was a lovely day. But no way, because there were two football matches going on by the students. What a disgrace. Why are there no police around to stop this? It's about time the students were tols this sort of behaviour is not to be tolerated in our town. tere is filthy writing all over the seats. As senior citizens we would like to sit in our town in comfort. |
| o o o o o o o o o o o o o o |
| Who is going to deal with yobs making churchyard a no-go zone? |
| From A Stafford Resident I WOULD like to know just who is going to take the bull by the horns and sort out all the problems that surround St Mary's Churchyard? It is fast becoming a no-go area with foul-mouthed, obnoxious youths congregating around the tombs near the rear entrance to the Guildhall. Not happy with just being there, they drape themselves all over the tombs leaving litter and rubbish in their wake, and when they tire of lounging around they jump on the tombs. These morons have absolutely no respect for anybody or anything, so who is going to take responsibility and return the churchyard back to a place of peace and tranquility, or shall we all not bother to do anything - which seems to be the answer to everything these days. Also despite council notices forbidding ball games, groups of young men decend on the churchyard most days and take over, turning most of it into a football ptch with little or no consideration for others. Is this also to be allowed? it seems to me that the only time the churchyard is quiet and totally free from these mindless idiots is as it was recently whaen it rained most of the day. Could it be the only thing that works is divine intervention? |
| Boredom is cause |
| From A Teenager IN response to claims of "mindless yobs" at St Mary's churchyard, while I agree that the behaviour of some of the people is, more often than not, less than perfect, not every teen who frequents that area is a mindless yob. The vast majority of people there are not "morons" but normal teenagers. The problem? Boredom. there is nowhere for Stafford's over-13 to under-18 population to meet friends. the group used to go to Victoria Park (and were often kicked out of this public park simply for being in a large group), but since the works began, that has become impossible. I am aware that Conexions are trying to provide a place for teenagers to go, and I thank them, and urge locals to help with this problem instead of complaining. the proposed skate park seemed lke a ray of light, but once again, the very same misers that complain about teens hanging around with nothing to do, dash the plans. As for the footballers, i would suggest they go to Rowley Park, which has public football fields. And for the people who frequent St Mary's, sometimes you really don't help yourselves you know! Please, can we try to develop some mutual respect? So, please, Stafford residents, council members, give use somewhere to go and something to do, and the problem will be solved. |
| So where do we go? |
| From Another Teenager FOLLOWING the recent outburst of complaints reagarding the social gatherings of young people at St. Mary's churchyard, I feel this one-sided issue needs to be debated. I use the area as a place to relax and socialise with friends, and I feel I should speak up for myself and on behalf of my peers. This area is a public place, hence the presence of benches. Who do thos writing letters of complaint see it as though we are invading their space? On several occasions, we have been moved on by police and asked not to gather in Stafford town centre, let alone the churchyard. How can this be justified considering we ourselves are part of the public? And if we cannot meet in the town centre, where it is both convenient and easy to access, where can we go? It also seems unfair that we should be labelled as mindless, obnoxious idiots or morons, (Newsletter, October 2). As individuals, it is not acceptable that we are exploited with insulting comments, especially in our own local newspaper. I hope those who have complained can now attempt to see this from a different prospective. |
| Our society is virtually impotent |
| From A E Johnson I READ the letter in the Newsletter (October 2) about St Mary's churchyard with interest. Despite valiant and at times nightmarish efforts by the more active church members the situation has deteriorated over the past years to a point where it is almost out of control. As a result that area of the town is deteriorating rapidly as a place of leisure and relaxation. After being involved in two more physical struggles this year, I have now decided that at 64 it is beyond my individual capacity to do anything further to rectify the situation. i know that most other church members have sadly come to the same conclusion. In addition to CCTV cameras, installed some years ago, it seems that everyone is aware of the problem, but as a society we have now reached a situation where we are virtually impotent when it comes to taking any effective action against anti-social behaviour. This in part is because we now lack any standards in our daily conduct to be in a position to judge what is and what is not anti-social and for this each and every one of us must take the blame. We have lacked the strength of character and foresight of our forefathers to fight for our beliefs and our quality of life. that apart, the vast majority of problems mentioned in last weeks letter could be solved overnight by moving the college and McDonalds out of the town centre. |
 |
| This one's mine! |
| The nation's future has a sad face |
| From Mick Oughton WHILST working in St Mary's Place last Moday, October 13, it was interesting to notice a group of 50 or so late teens behaving with no respect whatsoever in the grounds of St Mary's Church. Behaviour included a group of eight jumping in and oak structure at the west end of the building so violently that the structure itself was behaving in the manner of a see-saw and tipped a number of times. Another was jumping up and down over tombstones. Others split into smaller groups, some of whom threw a rugby ball to each other, others played football, both smaller groups using the west end of the church as a goal or a rebound wall, whild the remainder exercised their obvious right to make loud, abusive and foul comments and conversation over the length of the churchyard. These activities are the kind of thing that the working poulation of this, and may other towns, have come to expect from the ill-bred, scruffy, lazy offspring of privelaged background and since this has become the sad face of our nation's future, we accept that this puny rabble are normal. Their behaviour is further tolerated, even though so many aspects are disrespectful and even criminal, as in the case of the damage to the structure outside the church and by the blatant disregard shown by our own police force. A council funded CCTV system overlooks the area where the vandalism and disorder was taking place. A court official stood at the top of the court stairs observing the proceedings. A number of legal personnel passed through the rabble to and from the courts and two police officers walked from the direction of the town to the court building, yet nobody took any notice of these disrespectful vandals. Are we paying the wages of the court officials, police officers and CCTV monitors and does anybody care about the fact that we are definitely going to have to pay for repairs to the churchyard or that we are probably supporting at least a number of these individuals. |
| Unwelcome teenagers |
| From Another Teenager I WOULD like to respond to a letter regarding who is going to deal with the yobs making the St Mary's churchyard a no-go zone? I do not wish to offend the person who wrote the letter, but they offended me, by calling my friends and I mindless yobs and morons. I would like to point out that we are not obnoxious and also that our parents know where we are. My parents told me and my sister to respect the graveyard and we do. While I cannot speak for others, I have been there and I have not seen anyone being disrespectful. I would like to suggest that the people writing to the papers to complain about us write to the council and ask them to provide us with a place to go. As it seems that no matter where we go we are unwelcome. |
| Teenagers' response is pleasing |
| From a Stafford resident FURTHER to my letter (October 2) regarding the problems in St Mary's churchyard, which seems to have stirred a few emotions, I was pleased to see that three letters in response were from teenages who thought my remarks were offensive. Well let us look at this word. Offensive is when you walk through a churchyard and the only words that ring out are four letter ones; offensive is when you would like to sit on a seat and find that it is full of disgusting graffiti (that is assuming you can find one that hasn't been completely destroyed), for goodness sake! St May's is a churchyard, not a playground, and it deserves respect. If the young people who have put pen to paper want respect from us, then it is up to them to stand up and be counted and dissuade your friends, aquaintances or whoever they are from this anti-social behaviour or failing that rise above it and walk away. then you wont be tarred with the same brush. Why don't you channel your frustrations into lobbying your councillor, spend your lunchtimes writing letters, for a committee, put forward ideas, explain what it is you want - it's no good complaining you've got nowhere to go - you have to do something about it, not me, as was suggested ion one letter. Put your case forward and convince people you are worthy. You never know what might happen. |
| Do something for teenagers |
| From A Stafford mother of three IN RESPONSE to the recent letters from local teenagers about lack of places to meet/facilities etc, as the mother of three children, two grown up and the other still in her mid-teens, I can totally epathise with them. Stafford is well served with play parks for the younger age groups; it is time some money was spent on the 13-18 year olds. Here are some suggestions for Victoria Park: Turn the existing children's paddling pool into a skate park - the skateboarders already use this area when the pool is empty The little-used band stand area could be made into a larger paddling pool than we have at present, which in the winter could be used as an outdoor ice rink (real or synthetic). Both young and old could enjoy this facility I would like to see some of my council tax spent on giving our youngsters a chance to have some fun in the fresh air. Of course, Lotto funding is another option too. I would be interested to hear what people think of these ideas. |
 |
|
| Please don't judge us |
| From A Teenager IN RESPONSE to Mr Oughton's letter in the Newsletter, I would like to say how annoyed I am. He and others keep saying that the people hanging aroung St May's are "yobs" and "disrespectful". Mr Oughton actually referred to us as "ill-bred, scruffy, lazy offspring of privelaged background", but he doesn't know us, therefore has no right to judge us. And can I just ask, Mr Oughton, why you referred to us as "scruffy". What has the way we look got to do with anything? I respect that everyone has the right to their own opinions, but I feel we are being stereotyped and constantly being put down whe, in fact, the majority of us are doing nothing wrong. We have as much right as anyone else to sit in the churchyard - it is a public place, after all. After tombstones were vandalised in the churchyard, I understand that people would be wary of people hanging around there, but just because we are teenagers and it seems that just because we dress a certain way, we are the easyoption and are automatically blamed, and then continually blamed for other incidents afterwards. This is simply not fair. I would like to put forward a question to Mr Oughton and any other narrow-minded, judgemental people who are against us - where do you suggest the "yobs" go? Any suggestions would be welcome but at the moment it seems that no matter where we go or what we do, we are unwelcome, because people are willing to make assumptions about us merely based on the behaviour of minority groups. Why are people who sit and doing nothing wrong in St Mary's churchyard being victimised, when there are people out there who voilently attack others for their mobile phones, as the Newsletter recently reported. But nothing more is said about that. How, in any way, is that fair? |
| We know of freedoms, but not about social responsibility |
| From A Johnson I DO NOT know Mr Oughton, but his letter in the Newsletter succinctly described a day in the life of St Mary's churchyard. The item being damaged on this occasion was the replica Saxon wooden cross, the original of which is buried nearby. The cross, like the curch, is part of the Stafford tourist trail to encourage visitors to share in the town's heritage, beauty and economy. It has been damaged several times before, along with 60 window panes, beches, flower beds, tombstones, doors and stone walls. It seems surprising that the unidentified teenagers cannot see what so many other people witness as a day to day occurence. Perhaps it is that the have grown up in a period when they accept such behaviour as normal and are unable to understand the concerns about themselves and their peers. If that is the case, then we all have to bear some responsibility. We have allowed the politically correct brigade and other such groups to teach us about personal freedoms and rights, but nothing about social responsibility. Before another anonymous teenager writes, I have to stress that not all youngsters are anti-social, indeed the opposite is more often the case. They have always been welcome to use the grounds of the church if the do so in a proper manner and with due consideration for other people in the area. However, there is an old saying "we are judged by the company we keep". A regular excuse put forward by the footballers and skateboarders is that they have nowhere else to "play". This does not excuse playing in the churchyard, we know, nor justify some of the conduct that takes place. However, if a site for the college could be found outside the town centre, it may be that there would be sufficiant space to provide a sports field and skateboarding facilities. |
| Some of us are innocent |
| From A Young Person I FEEL the Stafford resident who felt they had "stirred a few emotions" has missed the point of those who responded to their letter regarding the problems at St Mary's churchyard. Many of us were simply offended because we had not even committed any of the offences referred to, myself included. in fact, many of us agree that such vandalism should not be tolerated, therefore to have the blame passed on to us as a group seems very unfair. am also aware that it is not a playground and was especially angry when one day I was trying to relax in the churchyard and a football flew into the side of my face and knocked hot soup over my friends hand. However, although there are signs to ban ball games, on this occasion the Guildhall security did not stop the game, but told the players to ignore use because we are "troublemakers". But this aside, please note that there are no signs to ban people from sitting on the grass and talking, are there? Furthermore, I found it interesting that your motive for writing in was that you were offended in the first place. So do two wrongs make a right? Do you admit that your letter was a form of retaliation? Is that a mature way to resolve any kind of problem? As one of my peers said, we need to develop some mutual respect, not fight as if we are at war. |
| Park ideas |
| From A Biker (aged 13) STAFFORD Borough Council said it was going to make a skate park somewhere in Stafford. I have two ideas where to build it. I thought that they could buy the current Tesco site and use it as an indoor, two floored skate park. It was said they were going to take Tesco down anyway. Also I thought of the old buildings near the railway club |
| o o o o o o o o |
| You said it |
| From Tom Eaton ANOTHER teenager complains about one of your correspondents "calling my friends and I mindless yobs and morons" and adds that "my parents told my sister and I to respect the graveyard" at St Mary's Church. He or she suggests that they need somewhere to go. ho about some English classes? |
| This one's mine too! |
 |
 |