Feisty women are never too old

Community organisations are groups of individuals who gather together around a common ideal or aim to gain supporters.

Most of these NGOs agree for important objectives such as protection of the environment, protection and expansion of the rights of individuals be they disabled disadvantaged, female, children or working people, and animals or birds.

Our Older Women's Network (OWN) is a collective of older women who operate within this framework and are a relatively small group which releases considerable energy in our passion for recognition and justice.

We take pride in what we have achieved through our collective wisdom.

Our collective spirit is the aspect which binds us, and I feel that this is the most important aspect in our lives as OWN members.

People need that sense of belonging to a worthwhile cause.

There is so much corruption at levels of government with secret dealing at their core, and in most business dealings, that we all become cynical and look for the worms at the centre in civic responsibility and so weaken the infrastructure of our society.

Many throw up hands and say why bother.

First of all we need to respect ourselves.

The honest and clear eyed in a community can lead us to recognise what is rotten and what is valid in enterprise and in most communities these people are there and in community organisations.

These are the people who write to the papers about what they see and hear.

They are the tall poppies who are attacked and it is important that they be the victors.

Nowhere where it is shown as in the abysmal performance in New Orleans.

Where were the alarm bells ringing there to point out what would happen in a crisis?

There seemed to be no civic responsibility shown much as the escape was left to individuals who looked after themselves.

Our Australian performance now with the bushfire menace relying to a large degree on community organisations seems much easier in comparison.

So up and at them, older women.

Us feisty women can show them that we are never too old, while there's life there's hope!

Enid Harrison, Woy Woy