Dear Editor:
I am writing to tell not only a story, but also to put out a warning to all North Shore residents that our community is still a target for crime.
We live in a condo unit right beside Maplewood Farm. In the six years we've been there, we have never had a problem with crime. We have always left our stuff outside, never thinking twice about the possibility someone might take something. It is nice to feel secure in your home and your community. After all, the North Shore has one of the lowest crime rates in the Lower Mainland.
But last Saturday, our seven-year-old boy's bike was stolen from outside our home.
This bicycle comes with a story. This summer, our two boys went on their first road trip to Alberta with my mother - their Nana. She knows a guy who rebuilds bikes and then donates them to families in need.
Our son has had his last bike for two years, and he had outgrown it, but we did not have the money to buy him a new one, so his Nana acquired a brand-new bike (well new to him) from this man and gave it to him. It was a yellow mountain bike with front and back shocks. It fit our son perfectly. He really was happy riding it.
The theft was a reality check for me as a father. It is not as if we left a Rocky Mountain bike with disc brakes and rock shocks in front of our home; we are talking about a kids' bike, one that has no real value except to the seven-year-old boy who loves to ride with his friends around our complex.
Who could have done this? If you are a father who took it for your child, then you need it more then we do. Keep it and spend time with your children, but remember that you need to make things right some day.
If you are a person who walked up from Seymour River after a night of drinking and decided to ride this small bike home or dump it in the bush, then you are a sad person and need to check your conscience. I do not know how to express my feelings on this matter. I do know that my children are very giving and if someone in need would have asked to use the bike my boy would have said yes.
We are a family of five with a newborn, seven months old, a five-year-old and a seven-yearold. My wife stays at home with the kids, and I work every day to ensure that they are taken care of.
My plea is that the bike be returned. There will be no questions asked.
I am a little upset with this, and I think that all parents should know that negative things can happen at any time, even right outside your front door. Take care of your things, but even more importantly take care of your family.
Remember we may not be able to change the world, but we can change our lives and our community.
Mark Smith North Vancouver
