A WORTHY CAUSE

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 219, 10 June 1919, Page 4

A WORTHY CAUSE

All possible sympathy must be felt with the efforts the Young Women's Christian Association is making to extend its sphere of-uso-fulness in this city, and tho organised appeal'that is now to be mado for funds should meet with a very ready response. The objects aimed at are in the best sense strictly practical. The association desires to considerably enlarge the building space at its disposal in order that •it may be enabled to take a more' effective part in meeting the great and increasing demand from girls of all classes for satisfactory living and boarding conditions. No one who is familiar with local conditions can bo unaware that this demand is to a serious extent unsatisfied. A not inconsiderable part of the population consists of girls who have come from other parts of the Dominion to work 'or study, and ■too often such girls search in vain for a congenial home, or one in which they aro , cared for as they ought to be. Purely commercial enterprise will never meet the case, but in such activities as centre in hostels and luncheon rooms the Y.W.C.A. is well qualified to create the atmosphere which, girls and young women need and will appreciate, Oiving practical attention to material needs it aims at neglecting nothing' that will promote tho healthy development of young womanhood in body, mind, and spirit. As matters stand, the association has well over a thousand members, and last year a total of 767 girls was accommodated in its hostels. Given the additional buildings the public is now asked to provide, these figures will no doubt be greatly improved upon. As most peonlc know, the association is largely self-supporting. It is chiefly in the matter of providing buildings that public assistance is looked for. There is no finer or worthier work than that of providing tho right environment for the future mothers of the race and assisting their development on sound lines. All who appreciate that incontestable fact should make it their business to respond with due liberality to the Y.WiC.A. appeal.