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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News Record, 2014-02-12, Page 5Wednesday, February 12, 2014 • News Record 5 Ir www.clintonnewsrecord.com When life gives you lemons, make batteries The News from Londesborough HULLETT CENTRAL PUBLIC SCHOOL Recently the Grade 6 pupils in Mrs. Gilroy's class have been messing with lemons and potatoes in an attempt to make a battery. The work began in the computer lab watching videos. The videos informed them about the supplies needed and the procedures. Back in class small groups gathered supplies and got down to work. The lemon experiment worked on by Bai- ley Hemp's group didn't go so well. The halved lemon made a big mess but no power. There was also no luck using either the seeds or the pulp. Bailey's conclusion was that a lemon could not power a light or make the buzzer sound. Griffin Bromley's group tried a five-step procedure with lemons. They hoped a step- by-step attempt would be successful but it proved to be a bad use of time. They rubbed copper [a penny] and zinc [a galvanized nail] with sandpaper. These two items were stuck in a centimeter slit on either side of a lemon. An alligator clip was attached to each con- ductor. However the light did not light and the buzzer did not sound. Colin Wilt's group hoped to conduct elec- tricity from a potato. Their experiment also used pennies and nails but in halved pota- toes. They kept adding potatoes to see if that helped but they had negative results as well. Hooking up potatoes and lemons failed to make the light light up or the buzzer sound. The class has a warning for parents: your potato and lemon supply may deplete as pupils try these experiments at home. If you have a large supply of potatoes they may try to power the house and go off the grid! Mr. Campbell's physical education classes have to do with Olympic events. Helen Lind- say and Ty Hoggart from the Grade One class tell about the luge. Each child lay flat on a scooter board on their stomach and moved around the gym and the pylons using their hands. They quickly learned to keep their fin- gers out of the way. In another event the children, lying flat on their stomachs on the scooter, used their legs to push off from the wall. No hands were allowed in this race. Three students at a time competed to see who went the farthest. The shortest distances were eliminated until only two pupils remained. In the final run Hayden Lee won the gold medal and Jayden Ainsley took the silver. The class plans to watch some luge on TV. Et Cetera The Londesborough Lions invite you to be their guests twice this coming month. This Saturday, Feb. 15, the Annual Easter Seals Snowarama takes place. The run sponsored by the snowmobile begins from the Londes- borough Community Hall beginning at 9 a.m. The local Lions club will be cooking breakfast for both riders and the general pub- lic. So if you would like to contribute to the campaign even if you are not snowmobiling drop by for breakfast that morning. Make it a late Valentine treat. Adult breakfast is $7.00. Then on March 5, Shrove Tuesday, the Lions group have a pancake and sausage supper planned. This will be a by donation meal. Our family enjoyed a week at a beautiful resort on the Mayan Riviera, along the Yuca- tan Peninsula of Mexico. We got out before the storm hit on January 29 and arrived home after the storm on February 5 blew itself out. We had had enough of cold and snow before we left and hoped it would have settled down before we came home. We joked about how both the Mexican and Ontario temperatures were similar, both around the 25 to 30 degree mark but at opposite ends of the thermome- ter. Not one of us was ready to come back to reality. The resort was beautiful, the weather warm and the beaches spectacular. Any rain shower was short and generally at night. The penin- sula resorts have literally been hacked out of the rain forests of the area so the air is always full of moisture. Not the humid kind; but the kind that does not allow towels to dry and infiltrates your clothing both in and out of the closet. We dined at small cafes and bar- becues poolside, on the beach, at huge buf- fets and some a la carte restaurants all with- out leaving the resort. The sun set very early evening but the eve- nings are a treat of warmth right through to bedtime no matter when that might be. The staff was friendly and helpful and always happy. The children of our group watched coatis, capybaras and iguanas from mere inches steps from their suites and had pictures taken with a monkey and a parrot. Swimming alongside diving pelicans provided some excitement as well. The beaches along this Atlantic coast are home to the world's second largest coral reef. Only that off Australia is bigger. It makes for great snorkeling which most of us were delighted by. Swimming with sea turtles was a blast as well. Another excursion found us touring the Mayan ruins at Tullum, a little bit of history/education along with the fun. Londesborough United Church Standing in for Terry Fletcher who was fighting the flu on Sunday, Feb. 9 was Darryl Bergsma at Londesborough United Church. The senior choir was on hand to sing the anthem, "When He Cometh': Crystal Whyte and her niece, Avery Whyte, spent time with the children at the front that morning. Avery told the boys and girls the Stone Soup story. According to the story a visitor dropped by a village and was in need of food. This was a very selfish village and the people didn't like to share. So the visitor started a pot of stone sup for himself. Eventu- ally less hard-hearted villagers added some cabbage, carrots, corn and beans. When the delicious soup was ready the whole village had a party. They had learned the benefits of sharing. As this was the Sunday School soup and sandwich luncheon day Crystal explained that because all the Sunday School teachers had contributed food the whole congrega- tion could share food, fun and fellowship fol- lowing the service. The message was titled "You Are Salt; You Are Light". Supporting scripture passages were Isaiah 58: 8-11 and Matt. 5: 13-20. The responsive reading was Psalm 112. In Christ's time light, was provided by can- dles or lamps, neither of which could really light up a room. Today's world has 'light pol- lution; so much so that in the city one cannot see stars. In these scripture passages Jesus talks about followers being the light that shines for/ to others so they, too, will believe. Each of us has a gift that needs sharing with others to be Christ's example to the world. Jesus told His disciples that they were the salt of the earth. In their time salt was a very valuable commodity. Its preservative powers and taste were essential to their food and lives. Thus Christ was telling the disciples that they were essential to the world and the spread of Christianity. Likewise what Chris- tians say or do matters to the world. We are as necessary as salt or light in the world as we interact with those around us. Terry's message suggests life find its savour in service to others as the light of the gospel becomes a beacon of hope. In order for Knox United in Auburn to hold their annual meeting on Feb. 16, Londesbor- ough United will hold their morning service at 9:30 a.m. that morning. Londesborough United will hold their annual meeting the fol- lowing Sunday at their regular time of 11 a.m. All women of the congregation are invited to attend the upcoming UCW meeting on Monday, Feb. 17 beginning at 7:30 p.m. Septic woes for Forest Ridge Road property Gerard Creces Clinton News -Record A gallery full of people brought their con- cerns to council Monday, Feb. 3, over a pro- posed new home in their small subdivision off Forest Ridge Road. At issue was the location of a septic tank, which would sit less than 100 metres away from a municipal well. That is the minimum distance from a municipal well in the new Source Water Protection Plan, which takes effect in March. Under the plan, existing threats have to be carefully managed and no new ones put in place. For those with septic tanks currently within 100 metres of the well, that means the status quo. Meanwhile, the proposed home is on an irregular lot, making it diffi- cult to fully reach the minimum distance from the municipal well. Outside the prop- erty line is an Ausable Bayfield Conserva- tion Authority regulated area. An ABCA report into the matter shows the natural habitat requirements are doa- ble, but they could not support the applica- tion because of the threat to drinking water. Planner Monica Walker -Bolton recom- mended deferring the matter to find other options for the septic tank location. Applicant Robin Hewitt said when he first began talking with the ABCA about the property the source water plan was not an issue. He said he met all the other requirements. Councilors Brian Barnim and Dan Colquhoun both said the rules that apply today are the ones council should be work- ing with. The looming changes to the Source Water Protection Plan are still a month off. However, as the risk is rated a 10 on the vulnerability scale, both the ABCA and a separate engineering report both said the plan should be a no-go for now. Neighbours agree. "My biggest concern is our drinking water," said property owner Ross Miller, who lives directly across from the lot in question. He said when he bought the property he was assured the area would remain zoned natural protection. Resident Steve Shanahan suggested the municipality check where piping is located near the property. Wendy Penhale-Johnston said drinking water is already a concern. "We have problems with our well water at the best of times," she said, noting there are four vacant lots still in the subdivision itself. "There is nothing to stop (Hewitt) from hooking up to the system on those existing lots." Council decided to defer the application and look into the possibility of a tertiary mitigation system for the property and whether that can satisfy the requirements of the ABCA. A separate motion by Barnim to approve the application subject to a development agreement did not pass.