Slow Down - Life Is Not A Race
Slow Down â Life Is Not A Race
To The Editor:
On Sunday, July 2, the second of our two cats was hit by a car in front of our home and killed. This same cat was struck by a car in the same place about four years ago and survived. This time she was not so lucky. Our other cat was also killed by a speeding motorist in the same spot five years ago.
While we wish we could say these were isolated incidents, affecting only us, unfortunately that is not the case. Weâve lived here for 30 years and just within the last ten years our neighbors lost a dog and three other cats to drivers in the same spot between our driveways on Riverside Road. That is seven pets hit in one spot in the road which is straight and has good sight lines. Unfortunately, a straight road with good visibility seems to encourage people to greatly exceed the speed limit, and, more often than not, at least in our experience, the driver just keeps on going after striking an animal, as if it didnât matter.
We have again lost a cherished family member, this time after being with us for 13 years. To prevent this from happening again, either to us or to our neighbors anywhere in town, we are asking the following:
1. Please donât speed on residential streets. The squirrel or raccoon you hit may next time be someoneâs petâ¦or someoneâs childâ¦so,
2. Please stop when you see an animal crossing the road. All life is precious, and most of us would rather err on the side of safety just in case, in haste, what you perceive to be a wild animal is actually a neighborâs petâ¦or child.
3. If you do hit an animal, please stop to see if it can be saved. Even if it canât be, most pets have identification on their collars. Pets are truly family members, and the owners would be grateful to know the fate of a missing pet, as we were when both times a caring neighbor brought our cats back to our property.
Life is not a race. Please Slow Down! Youâll live longer, and so will our wildlife and pets.
Caryl and Bill Timmel
67 Riverside Road, Sandy Hook                                     July 9, 2006