Dear Sir,
The following is the text of a letter that I wrote to James Burns, the executive director of the Lake Chapala Society (LCS), and to other members of the LCS administration, following my termination as a volunteer teacher at the Wilkes Education Center. The center is run under the auspices of LCS.
My teaching experience at the Wilkes Center during my three-year tenure has been almost uniformly excellent. I have had the pleasure of teaching highly motivated and excited students whose desire to work hard to learn English has been inspiring. In over 40 years of teaching, my Wilkes experience has certainly been amongst the best of my career. I’ve also enjoyed sharing the experience of our two cultures in a positive way, which is, after all, supposed to be a primary purpose of LCS.
My termination yesterday did not exactly come as a surprise. Despite all that I had heard, I had hoped that the executives of LCS would see our efforts as constructive and that they would at least consider our desire to have some input into decisions that affect the very heart and soul of the Wilkes Center. I was obviously wrong. The administration is not at all interested in our point of view. But to terminate me in the terms used was infuriating, demeaning and defamatory. At no time did I ever use profanity or vulgarity. To so state damages my reputation and grossly mistakes my intent. To accuse me of a lack of civility or collegiality is obviously a subjective judgment. Any interaction I had with the administration certainly began in a very civil tone, even though the last meeting escalated into a less-than-productive interchange, caused mostly by the administration’s total refusal to address or even listen to our concerns.
Finally, I think the LCS executive director and the administration as a whole fundamentally misunderstand the nature of a volunteer, not-for-profit, social services organization. There needs to be a much deeper evaluation of the mission of this organization. One can believe in the top-down corporate model without deciding to totally ignore the input of those who are sincerely trying to fulfill the goals we have set before us. LCS is an important organization in Ajijic, and I fear that this administration will seriously impair our mission and put distance between the expat community and the Mexican community which welcomes us. The Wilkes Center is a main way that LCS gives back to the Mexican community and any leadership that jeopardizes that should be seriously evaluated.
Len Cavise
Dear Sir,
I have been happy to see the recent spate of letters about the bike path. We do not own a car, so all of our traveling around the lakeside is done by bicycle. I ride between Chapala and Ajijic every day, usually more than once. It is incredible to have this path stretching almost 40 km along the lake.
The main problem right now stems from some riders simply going too fast. Three or four years ago, the path was used almost exclusively by cyclists and pedestrians. Now we have electric tricycles, bikes and scooters. We have gas-powered bicycles and electric motorcycles. Just today, I saw a little vehicle that looked like something a meter maid might drive, carrying four people.
I have no problem sharing the bike path with these vehicles so long as they don’t zip around at excessive speeds as if they are the only ones on the path.
Today I saw people exiting the bus as a scooter came flying through the bus stop. An elderly man would have been knocked over if a fellow passenger hadn’t grabbed him. Last week I saw some kids on their bikes, not really paying attention as kids are wont to do, and a big tricycle came barreling around the corner, taking up their lane and half of the other. I, myself, was almost run over by a guy on an electric bike going at least 40 km/hour.
Another problem with excessive speeds is that it is not fair to the cars. Coming out of a side street to get onto the Carreterra, a driver might look to the left, see a bicycle a block away and figure he has time to go. Not realizing that the bike might be traveling at 40 km/hour or more.
Many cities and towns around the world have imposed speed limits on their bike paths, mostly due to the increase in electric vehicles on the paths. Common limits are: 10-15 km/hour in congested areas (like Ajijic), 20 km/hour in well-used stretches (between Ajijic and Chapala), and 25 km/hour on less busy stretches (West of Ajijic).
Let’s get some speed limits put on our lovely bike path so we can all enjoy it safely.
Diana Boyle