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Home My WebLink AboutHuron Expositor, 2014-12-31, Page 44 Huron Expositor • Wednesday, December 31, 2014 ii h iron Expositor PUBLISHED WEEKLY — EST. 1860 P.O. Box 69, 8 Main Street Seaforth Ontario NOK phone: 519-527-0240 fax: 519-527-2858 www.seaforthhuronexpositor SUN MEDIA A Quebecor Media Company NEIL CLIFFORD Publisher neil.clifford@sunmedia.ca MAXWELL BICKFORD Advertising Rep. max.bicicford@sunmedia.ca DIANNE MCGRATH Front Office seaforth.classifieds@sunmedia.ca WHITNEY SOUTH Multimedia Journalist seaforth.news@sunmedia.ca MARIE DAVID Sun Media Group Publisher Grey Bruce Huron Division 519-364-2001 or 519-372-4301 SUBSCRIPTION RATES 1 YEAR $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 2 YEAR $95.00 (90.48+4.52 GST) SENIORS 60 WEEKS $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 120 WEEKS $95.00 (90.48+4.52 GST) Publications Mat Agreement No. 40064683 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT RO. Box 69 Seaforth ON NOK 1 WO For any non -deliveries or delivery concerns: phone: 519-527-0240 Advertising is accepted on condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error, advertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell and may be withdrawn at any time. The Huron Expositor is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproduction purposes. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canadian Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. Canada' editorial RIDE stops keep us safe It's the time of year when we drive from home to home to share presents. Or head to New Year's parties. It's a time for gifts. Friendship. Food. And, let's be honest, it's also the season for drinldng. Moderate drinking, we hope. One safety precaution society takes at this time of year is to increase the number of police RIDE checks. For a lot of people, this feels like an inconven- ience. They want to avoid the whole process and help other people do the same. These days some social media users are alerting people on Twitter, Facebook and other programs to the location of RIDE stops. This is nuts. What's the point? Sure, it saves you a few minutes. But it doesn't save lives. "When you're Facebooking or tweeting where police are setting up their RIDE stops, what you're doing is warning drunk drivers and hampering the police's ability to get them off the road," Cst. David Hopkinson with the Toronto Police Service told Sun Media. If you're certain that you're sober then you've got nothing to hide. Waiting at a RIDE check only takes a few minutes. But if you send out the location, you're potentially letting a drunk driver off the hook. You're enabling criminal behaviour. There's the chance that person could later get into an accident with you or one of your loved ones. Mothers Against Drunk Driving's website explains that "In 2010, it was estimated that 2,541 individuals were killed in motor vehicle crashes in Canada. MADD Canada estimates that at a minimum 1,082 of these fatalities were impairment -related." As a Statistics Canada release from 2013 notes, "impaired driving is the leading cause of criminal death in Canada." However they also note the Christmas season sur- prisingly has one of the lowest counts of drunk driv- ing incidents. So no big deal then? Forget the RIDE checks? On the contrary. StatsCan speculates that the RIDE checks, free drive -home services and increased awareness bring this number down. In other words, the system is working. Stay safe this holiday season. Don't drink and drive. Look out for your co-workers, friends and fam- ily. And please don't share RIDE check locations. QM! Agency www.seaforthhuronexpositor.com That's all folks Here I sit, night before deadline, pon- dering my column. In what has become a weekly tradition, I've left my opinion piece until last. I don't know what it is about writing these last min- ute, but it always seems to happen. And each time it does, I can't help but think of a certain Calvin and Hobbes cartoon. Let me set the scene. As Calvin plays in the sand- box, Hobbes asks him if he's come up with an idea for his school project. "No, I'm waiting for inspira- tion," says Calvin. "You can't just turn on creativity like a fau- cet, you have to be in the right mood." "What mood is that?" Hobbes inquires, only to have Calvin respond, "Last minute panic:' I'll be honest, on the odd occasion I can totally relate. What's different about this column in particular is that it'll be my last. After 13 and a half months, 52 columns, hundreds of stories and thousands of photos, this is the final thing I will write for the Huron Expositor. Instead, I'll be embarking a new adventure starting Dec. 30, in London. Since arriving in Seaforth last November I've learned a lot. Not many people have the chance be the sole reporter for a newspaper, and trust me when I say my experience here has been incredibly valuable. But, as with most things in life, it's time to move on. What would life be like, after all, without new beginnings? Col umn Whitne Huron E y South xpositor There's a lot of things I'm going to miss, not only about my job, but also about living in Huron County. Not the raccoons though, you can keep them... Time and time again I've writ- ten about the positive things I've seen throughout this community. And regardless of my initial concern over where I was going to find a good latte, not to mention my confusion about what the heck a furrow was, I grew to love the small rural town I was lucky enough to call home. Organizations like the Sea - forth Optimists and Lions Club taught me the impor- tance of community involve- ment, while the students at Seaforth Public and St. James schools gave me confidence in a new generation. Events like the Disney Breakfast for the Duffy fam- ily, as well as the Drive for Dean, solidified the realiza- tion that a community can come together for a neigh- bour in need. The support I've received from many folks around town has really meant a lot, and I never tire of hearing what the residents of Maplewood Manor have to say about my columns - even the silly ones. To those I've had the honour of meeting and getting to know in my time here in Seaforth, thank you. To the friends I've made along the way, I love you - this isn't goodbye. And to everyone, from every corner of Huron East, I wish you all so much happiness and suc- cess in the coming year. It's been a pleasure. SEAFORTH HURON EXPOSITOR • HOURS OF OPERATION MONDAY: 9:00 - 5:00 • TUESDAY: - CLOSED • WEDNESDAY: - 9:00 - 5:00 *THURSDAY: - 9:00 - 5:00 • FRIDAY: - 9:00 - 5:00 • SATURDAY & SUNDAY: - CLOSED ADVERTISING DEADLINE: FRIDAY AT 2:00 • PHONE 519-527-0240 • FAX: 519-527-2858 www.seaforthhuronexpositor.com