There's
stigma attached to the name Chicken Noodle Club ever since the arrest of
former Saint John Common Councillor and pedophile Donnie Snook and his guilty
pleas on more than 40 charges of child exploitation.
Snook
became the face and voice for the Chicken Noodle Club. Judith
Meinert-Thomas, who was a volunteer for 4 or 5 years, says a makeover is
needed to ensure its survival but she's confident it will withstand the
current difficulties.
Meinert-Thomas says besides a new moniker, a new person will have to be hired who will be spotless.
She points out the lunch program feeds 18 thousand young people a year in the south end and that's nothing to sneeze at.
Saint
John MP Rodney Weston says he is personally troubled with the number of
high risk offenders being released into the community.
He says many people are expressing concerns to him over safety and protecting families.
After
speaking with local police and the federal office of Public Safety,
Weston says its clear changes need to be made with how known sex
offenders are released, what information should be made available to the
public and the locations where they are to be released.
Weston says he'll be working with the Minister of Public Safety and the province to examine the current provisions in place.
He's
calling for stronger rules to ensure more public disclosure of
information surrounding the release of high risk sex offenders and the
application of conditions to their release which protect the public
interest.
