HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2017-02-09, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2017.
Burton tracks, visits family roots with Hoogenboom
PEOPLE AROUND
LONDESBORO
By BRENDA
RADFORD
Call
523-4296
In the spring of 2016, Lianne
Hoogenboom and Alicia Burton
made a most memorable trip to
Uruguay. Why Uruguay you may
ask? Uruguay is a small country
nestled between Brazil and
Argentina with a population of 3.5
million people. That's the same
population of the G.T.A. Lianne has
written a most interesting account of
their trip which I'll share with you
this week and next.
Twenty years had passed since
Alicia left Uruguay and since then
had had no contact with her
grandparents, her abuelo and abulea,
Spanish for grandfather and
grandmother. She was not even sure
they were still alive.
After years of wondering, she
managed through social media to
make contact with them and decided
to make the long trip to Uruguay to
visit and discover her family roots.
Three flights and 23 hours later the
duo landed in the capital city of
Montevideo.
Both women were experiencing a
wide range of emotions as they
walked through the airport with their
carry -ons (the airline had lost their
luggage) as they prepared for the
reunion. So much anticipation and
planning had gone into this moment.
In the tiny arrivals waiting area the
travellers spotted an elderly couple
looking just as nervous as they felt.
Lianne says tears flowed freely as
the three people connected by blood
after 20 years of separation through
no fault of their own embraced each
other. Alicia is their only
granddaughter and now she was
getting the chance to put some of her
Sunday School set to
host lunch on Feb. 12
The Sunday school of
Londesborough United invites
everyone to stay for soup and
sandwiches following the morning
service on Feb. 12. The morning
worship on Feb. 19 will begin at
9:30 a.m. to accommodate Knox
United which plans to hold their
annual meeting that day at
Londesborough's service time.
The sympathy of the community
is extended to Murray Govier on the
passing of his sister, Joan [Bob]
McDougall. Keep him in your
thoughts as he deals with this loss.
Bob Trick provided an interesting
aside to one of last week's items.
During their high school days, Bob
and John Turner were good friends.
He told me that during the summers
of his university years, John served
as an itinerant preacher in the
Maritimes. One summer Bob and
Neil Trewartha, another friend, took
the train east to visit John. Bob told
me that along the way in Quebec the
train stopped at many small towns to
offload milk cans. This custom,
typical of the times, probably gave
rise to the expression "being
on/taking the milk run".
We are less than a week away
from 'the love day', Valentine's Day,
a moneymaker apparently for
producers of chocolates and
The Classifieds Are
the Cat's Meow.
Area shoppers know the Classifieds are the
purr-fect place to find a bargain. In the
Classifieds, you can track down deals on
everything from collectibles to cuddly
kittens. It's easy
to place an ad or find the items you want
and it's used by hundreds of shoppers
every day.
Go with your instincts and use
the Classifieds today.
The Citizen Classifieds
Blyth • Brussels
523-4792.887-9114
greeting cards. `Ain't She Sweet"
wasn't necessarily written for the
occasion but will be heard many
times over the airwaves in the next
few days.
The song was written by Jack
Yellen in 1926. He had dozens of
other hit tunes so was somewhat of a
celebrity when he attended the 50th
anniversary of his high school
graduation in 1959. Celebrity status
meant nothing to his English teacher
who admonished him with "And I
thought I taught you that `ain't' is
bad grammar!"
life's puzzle together. There was
much to catch up on and the next two
weeks were a time of discovery
about family and beautiful Uruguay.
Naturally there was a language
barrier to overcome. The Canadian
women had learned some very basic
Spanish and the abuelos had to recall
some English. The Canadians also
relied heavily on apps on their
iPhones. Piling into a hatchback the
foursome headed through
Montevideo. The trek into the city
had them passing through some very
ramshackle areas right next to extra
wealthy areas. The contrasts were
striking as they travelled along the
"Rambla", a long seaside walkway
along the Atlantic coast. Most
disturbing was the sight of persons
actually in garbage bins looking for
something of value. An early stop
along the drive was for Dulce de
Leche Churros, Grandmother's
favourite treat.
Lianne and Alicia used the online
accommodation service, AirBNB,
and for $60 Canadian a night they
had a very respectable apartment in
a nice neighbourhood. They were
just a block from the Rambla, the
city's best shopping centre, the
ocean and a short walk to Alicia's
grandparents.
When the older couple needed a
rest from the emotions and the visit,
the Canadians had chances to
explore Uruguay.The women report
that it is a country of extensive
grasslands or "pampas". Sixty per
cent of the land is used for sheep and
cattle farming. Soybeans is a huge
export product making the women
feel an affinity for Huron County as
they drove the countryside. They
saw many "gauchos", the hardy
South American cowboys. These
skilled horsemen ride "crillos",
small, sturdy and very intelligent
horses who are noted for their
longevity. Lianne and Alicia
attended a yearly festival devoted to
these hard working horsemen and
their mounts, Uruguay's Calgary
Stampede.
Lianne has a mouthy little Quaker
parrot called Kiwi and she was
thrilled to see colonies of these
beautiful bright green parrots flying
freely. These birds are native to
Uruguay and considered pests.
These Monk Parrots, as they are also
called, are very social birds and
build massive stick nests with
different entrances for other birds.
Read this space next week for
more about this trip.
Making snow angels
Elizabeth Howson took advantage of the fresh snow last
week at Hullett Central Public School during recess. She
made snow angels that, given the depth of the freshly fallen
snow, looked pretty impressive. (Denny Scott photo)
FROV LONDESBORO
Looking for local heroes
There are so many people out there who do
so much to improve their community.
Now you have a chance to say thanks.
Nominate that special person for the 32nd
Annual Citizen Citizenship Awards.
Each year a committee chooses an outstanding citizen from each of the Blyth and area
and Brussels and area communities to receive an award for contribution to the
community. If you know someone you think should be honoured, please fill in the ballot
and send it in. You may attach a longer explanation of why you think your nominee
should win, if you like. If you have nominated someone before and he or she didn't win,
please feel free to try again.
I nominate
as Citizen of the year for
Blyth Brussels
& area & area
I feel she/he deserves this award because
1
Nomination Deadline July 31, 2017.
Name and phone number of nominator