Mr. Geoff Meggs

"The best part [about the Games] is that there will be a period for a while a sense of everyone pulling together, and just having a good time together as a community." said City Councillor Geoff Meggs on a cool, sunny Monday morning in a small meeting room in City Hall. In this meeting room there was a table, surrounded by six chairs. In these chairs sat Emma Djaw, Hannah Lin, Mr. Geoff Meggs, and I. Emma, Hannah and I were interviewing Mr. Geoff Meggs about the upcoming Winter Games and how they relate to all Vancouverites. Throughout the interview we talked about homelessness, youth, blogs, and the benefits and disadvantages of hosting the Games.

Mr. Geoff Meggs spoke in that interview about homelessness, and said that the Games have put pressure on the province and the city to open shelters. The real test, Mr. Geoff Meggs said, will be what happens to the shelters after the Games, as the funding for them ends on April 30^th this year.

We questioned the City Councillor continuously about youth. Mr. Geoff Meggs suggested youth wanting to experience the Games should get downtown as much as possible, check out Northern House, and to try to attend the Paralympics, as they are accessible, lots of fun, and high quality. He also said that he thinks snowboarding, half-pipe, and ski cross are going to be popular sports among youth. When asked about amateur sport opportunities, Mr. Geoff Meggs replied with an immediate 'No,' he continued on to talk about the lack of amateur sport in the provincial budget and how that makes it nearly impossible for many families to afford, and have time for, the few amateur sport opportunities for youth.

Mr. Geoff Meggs has a blog, (www.geoffmeggs.ca) and told us that his blog allows him to communicate with those he never would have otherwise, and it excites him to be able to communicate with others so quickly.

As I mentioned before, Mr. Geoff Meggs believes the best part of the Games is everyone having a good time as a community, but what about the worst part? "My preference would be that it would be more about the sport, and more about the community, and less about the selling." said Mr. Geoff Meggs. I'm sure we all agree with him on this point.

The interview on Monday was an incredible experience, and wouldn't have been possible without Emma Djaw setting it up, Hannah Lin contributing her skills, and, of course, Mr. Geoff Meggs. Thanks so much to all of you! Please check out Hannah's blog: www.slr-oapgames.blogspot.com, and Emma's blog: www.olympics-emma.blogspot.com .

Stay tuned throughout the Games for lots of interesting stories!