Rewards are all there for the taking

AS ONE door closes, another opens, or so the saying goes, and for Forres that could well turn out to be true.

News that the Army looks likely to move into Kinloss once the RAF leaves has already been well received.

This, coupled with the announcement this week that Accunostics are also bringing investment and jobs into the area, is another positive step forward for the town.

HIE Moray seem to be doing their best to attract inward investment to Moray, and the arrival of the company at the flagship enterprise park proves this. Long may it continue, and hopes are high that other empty buildings will become throbbing hubs of industry and enterprise.

Work is also going on elsewhere to increase the town’s pull as a tourist attraction, coupled with efforts in the local hospitality industry to put Forres on the map for good service. This only serves to prove that by working together, there could yet be light at the end of the tunnel. Things are tough, but the rewards are there for the taking.

However, for one couple who wished to move here from the south, and are potential ambassadors for the area, their experience of the Forres area has turned sour after vandals constantly smashed up their efforts to renovate an old cottage in a rural area outside the town – not once, not twice, but several times. Police are now taking an interest, and we hope that the culprits can be brought to book.

Young Forres cancer sufferer Alia McFarland was invited this week to open the refurbished blood donation centre at Leanchoil Hospital. Due to the necessity for transfusions and other treatment, Alia is a well-known face at the centre, and if anyone was an ambassador for Forres and a shining example of how to keep smiling through the bad times, it is this five-year-old. She serves as an inspiration to us all.