“As are families so is society.” “Good families help build good communities, and good communities strengthen family life.” U “A stable family life contributes to the development of emotionally and socially healthy and responsible adults.” These are more than high – sounding platitudes. They are truisms that ought to be heeded – and they’ll be brought into sharp focus Wednesday when the 14th annual Family Life Conference will be held at the Wilkinson Center Ballroom with a thousand people expected. The conference, which has become a tradition in Utah Valley, is part of a Brigham Young University sponsored Family Life Week. The conference itself is sponsored by the Family Life Council of Utah County, BYU, Utah State University ‘ Extension Service, school districts, Parent – Teacher Associations, and other community organizations. Carefully – selected del-egates representing youth, parents, and teachers wm participate but anyone is welcome. Workshops will include on dealing with family life education and another with nutritional realities. The week’s activities will conclude with a banquet honoring the living recipients of the Utah Mother of the Year and Utah Young Mother of the Year awards. This year’s theme, “Creating Effective Families,” will focus on ways and means by which families and individual members may increase understanding and skills in order to more effectively fulfill their roles and responsibilities. Our society probably has never been in greater need of developing strength from within. Without doubt the family is a great potential source for this strength. The Herald congratulates the leaders and participants in the Family Life Week and Conference activities for making their talents available and assuming their roles as responsible, contributing citizens in their communities. It would be well if their efforts could be emulated elsewhere. With so many forces seemingly at work for deterioration of the family, it is noteworthy when individuals and groups initiate programs for strengthening the family. Certainly the 14-year-old family life conference tradition should be perpetuated. S0 Thev Say “You can vote with your feet in this country. If a state is mismanaged, you can move.” -Ronald Reagan. commenting on the possibility that some states, under his proposed decentralization plan, might provide less adequate welfare services for the poor than the federal government.