Letter from Wayne Acathan & Rebecca Garrod

3:19pm Friday 4th July 2008

I SEE after sales care is a priority at A E Smith funeral directors. Exactly what problem do people have with these tributes at people's graves?

Never have I met anyone, nor heard anyone, on our daily visits to Whitworth Road, complain or comment on any grave. This is typical of modern day Swindon and it's no wonder Swindon gets slated so often. People in Swindon seem to devote their entire life opposing anything and everything they can find.

Mr Hanks obviously has nothing better to do with his time, other than dream up ways of upsetting his very own customers by commenting on issues that, even as a funeral director, do not concern him.

Why don't these people concentrate on cleaning up streets and neighbourhoods, cycle tracks of overhanging branches which nearly take cyclists eyes out, and glass, derelict children's playgrounds that are too dangerous to play in and ridding the streets of gangs that hang around and terrorise other folk, often right outside our own front doors.

Those are the real health and safety issues that affect everybody, every day.

I agree a line has to be drawn somewhere with memorials, but wind chimes, teddies and flowerpots? What risk or socially unacceptable properties do any of these possess? The nearest house is a minimum of 30 to 40 yards from the graves, most of which probably, like most of our neighbours, have wind chimes and flowerpots anyway. I fail to see who could be upset by such items.

If we want to tie a balloon or teddy on our son's grave, then the simple answer is, we will, and will keep doing so.

So come on council, let's concentrate on real issues and stop harassing innocent people just because they're easy targets'.

WAYNE ACATHAN & REBECCA GARROD Beech Avenue Swindon

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