The importance of promoting family values in our society

By Donald None, Thompson

A strong family system is vital if we expect to have a strong country in the future. Many families are desperately in need of help to survive.

Having served as a parish pastor for twenty-three years, and a public school teacher for six years, I see a great need for helping homes in our State to be stronger. Many young people are depressed because of conflicts at home. It is hard for them to concentrate on their school work or even take an interest in attending church consistently.

I have done a lot of counseling with single parent families, where in most cases a female is the head of the house. I have noticed that children from these families exhibit the above symptons more prominently than homes with a father and mother.

When we stop to realize that in some of our counties one out of every two marriages fall on the rocks of divorice, we are in deep trouble! The time has come for us to promote family values more than ever before. We can start by establishing positive programs co-ordinated by qualified volunteers throughout our State. These programs will be designed to help families to resolve conflicts, thus helping to save homes. We need to emphasize to parents that marriage is for keeps and not something to discontinue when things are tough.

Many couples have abandoned the marriage ceremony and are shacking up. What kind of example is this for our children? They will grow up thinking that marriage is not that important. We must encourage people to get legally married before living under the same roof.

A number of children have gay parents, but I have discovered that young people living in this environment have major conflicts, because the most healthy situation for children is growing up in a home where a man and a woman who are legally married exists.

Lastly but not least, we must encourage families to adopt spiritual values. I believe church attendance is important if a home expects to be strong. I am not saying that church attendance is a guarantee that homes will stay together, but it sure helps! We need to encourage families to find a church where they feel comfortable and where people care about them. Familes who participate in spiritual activties are more likely to survive than homes that do not.

If elected to the Fifth District Assembly, I will do everything in my power to strengthen our homes. If we do not do this we are headed for disaster.