Viewpoint DOLLARS NEEDED By Paul Jurbala, OWSA Executive Director You'll be noticing more beggars in the days to come, and one of them will be the OWSA. We'll keep it discreet, of course, but eventually the requests for donations in the magazine, handbook and virtually every letter we send will become pretty obvious. Why are we doing this? Well, it's just the '90's way of life. The Ontario government reduced our operating grant nearly 25% last year, and this year, predictions are for another savage cut. Charities and not-for- profits (like us) have been climbing on to the gaming bandwagon in a frenzy, but things are changing there, too; now that there's a bingo hall on every corner and a charity casino every night, the pie is getting sliced thinner and thinner. In the last issue of Ontario Water Skier you read about our bingo Wednesday mornings, but after 14 weeks of operation the OWSA has made a profit of only $100. Bingos regularly start slowly, taking up to a year to attain steady profitability, and we're still hoping it'll turn around; still, it's not helping with our current cash crunch. LETTER TO THE EDITOR The Ontario Water Skier welcomes your letters. Let us know what's on your mind. I really enjoy receiving your publication however I have a suggestion which would make it much more informative for us "old guys". When you print the individual skier's stats, would it be too much to ask that you not only print our "NEW & IMPROVED" method (ie. 5 @ 14/25m), but perhaps also add the 5@ ?feet? We have enough problems with failing memories, etc. etc. that your help and consideration would be appreciated with respect to this matter. A "Senior" member, Marc Morin North Bay Editor's note: Thanks for writing, Marc. We'll keep your request in mind. In fact, see page 18! When the cash-strapped provin- cial government sanctioned wide- open gambling as a life-preserver for non-profit groups, perhaps they didn't think about competition. They didn't predict that charities would be pitted against charities, with "medi- cal" charities whispering that sports don't really need the money, and municipalities jostling the province for a share of licensing revenue. Just the other week one of the life-pre- servers was yanked away, when the Ministry of Consumer and Com- mercial Relations decided that Pro- vincial Sport Organizations (OWSA again) didn't really have a provincial mandate if they didn't have clubs in the majority of Ontario's 840 munic- ipalities. The result is that sports don't qualify for provincial licences for Nevada ticket sales. Remember when all the proceeds of provincial lotteries were earmarked for culture, sport and recreation? Now over 70% goes to hospitals- not a bad place for the money to go, but no help to starving sport organizations, and now Nevadas are out of bounds too. . Looking at the evidence, it's not hard to believe that government- provincial or federal- wants to wash its hands of amateur sport alto- gether. And corporate sponsorship in these recessionary days is very limited indeed. So what are we to do? One answer, as you've read in these pages before, is to be ag- gressive in providing new programs and services which people will buy and which will generate membership revenue. A second answer, which you will become increasingly familiar with, is just to ask for cash dona- tions. Water Ski Canada's doing it with their Fund of Excellence pro- gram, and more and more we'll be doing it too. There is another way. Write to the Premier and the Minister of Culture, Tourism and Recreation (your own MPP too) and let them know sport and recreation are worth spending tax dollars on. Write to the Minister of Consumer and Corporate Rela- tions and let her know sport needs access to gaming revenues, and regulations should be revised to ensure that access. "All that is needed for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing", and all that is needed for the demise of organized amateur sport in Ontario is for you to do the same.