HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1974-05-29, Page 2i• 14 e
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AN OPEN LETTER
TO THE RATEPAYERS AND RES-
IDENTS OF WEST WA WA NOSH.
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"The '!epoy 'Town"
LUCKNOW, ONTARIO
Second Class Mail Registration Number ow
Established 1873 --Published Wednesday
Member of the C.C.N.A. and 0.W.N.A.
Subscription Rate, $8.00 a year in advance
1
$2 extr to
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••1
a U.S.A.... an Foreign
Donald C. Thompson, Publisher
LUCKNOW AND DISTRICT
SWIMMING P00
••• ••••• ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • • • • • • ¤ • • • • •.• • • .• •
WILL BE 'HOLDING
REGISTRATION
AT THE LUCKNOW TOWN HALL
Saturday, June 1
FROM 10 A.M. TO 4 P.M.
Saturday, June 8
FROM 9 A.M. TO 12 NOON
There will be two 'summer swimming sessions — July
July 26>inclusive; July 29 to August 23 inclusive.
PRICE PER SESSION_
$15.00 per family (parents not included)
$8.00 for teens — $5.00 for children
Please Note
The size of the beginner swimming classes is limi
10 per instructor per period of time. So come early to g
time of your choice.
The Junior, Interinediate and Senior classes are not
Iricted.
ON REGISTRATION DAY PLEASE KNO
SWIMMING LEVEL ATTAINED , TIME PERIOD DEO
IN WHICH SWIMMING SESSION YOU WANT
TO BE ENROLLED — (July or August or bail
DON'T ENROLL SMALL CHILDREN WhO AO
LESS THAlsi A4" TALL
THANK YOU
1
PAGE TW411)
Editorial Comment...
THE LIICKROW SENTINEL., LLICKNGW, ONTARIO
The Alexander MacKenzie En-
dowment Fund, one of the finest
educational assistance funds,
and certainly one of the most un-
ique this province has ever known,
remains in limbo three years after
the Public'Trustee removed the
fund from the local trustees,who
had been, administering it for 28
years.
When the late Mr. MacKenzie
of Kinloss Township willed •
$32,000 4o the Lucknow High.
School in 1943, we doubt if he
eVer imagined the "red tape" that
would arise when the provincial
'government , through the Public
Trustee, got their fingers in the
pie in 1971 ruling that the method
of administration which had
worked well for 28 years would no
longer apply, and that local board
Again I question a report of
West Wawanosh Council Minutes,
that of May 15;1974;
In part it reports that a Petition
regaritling dust control at St. Hel-
ens and from there On, conces- •
lion 10/11 to Belfast, iigned by a
majority ,of residents of St. Hel-
ens area was presented to Council
and was tabled on motion of
Rutherford and Foran.
Actually, using the South West
corner of the only village block
as a dividing point, 55.5% of the
signatures were from petitioners
west of this point to Belfast.
These include nine names of
people whO own property on this
portion of Concession 10/11, but
who live elsewhere. We apprec-
iate such unselfish support.
The remaining 44.5% of the tot-
al signatures are those of St. Hel-
ens residents who deserve the same
consideration as the other 55.5%.
This should prove the distribu-
tion.of petitioners in the areas.
The definition of "Tabled" is to
receive as a report, or petition,
etc. 'but to agree to postpone its
consideration indefinetely. It is
about what I expected.
Does our ToWnship Council
realize they are- Representatives
of those who hold voting privileg-
es and that they are responsible to
them and not a law unto themsel ,
ves?
It is to be hoped that.in the next
Nomination Meeting and Election
in this Township, there will be
competition from progressive,
concerned ratepayers who will
accept the responsibility of run-
Mu for Office and . providing
us with fair, local governMent.
Please consider this seriously.
The Township needs you. ,
Dorothy McKenzie,
Lot 14,
W. Wawanosh.
May 24, 1974.
In April 1964, uncNi the Secur-
ities Commission Act, the
$32,000 ( capital fund) could no
longer be accumulated and inter-
est on the capital fund had to be
all given out in one year as bur-
saries and loans to boys request-
ing assistance. The loans were
interest free but a father or guard
ian of a boy had to co-sign the
note.
At the present time there is
over $20,000 outstanding, out on
loan. With the fund in a state of
limbo for 3 years, rib attempt has
been made to collect
this money.
In 1968, when Lucknow High
School students were transferred
to Wingharn, an ad hoc commit-
tee was formed from the
Huron-Bruce High School Board
with William G. Hunter as its
Chairman and Mrs. -IviacKenzie
as secretary, Members of this
committee were Charles Webster ,
Virden Mowbray, Frank McQuil-,
lin, Harvey Houston and Clarence
Medley.. They gave many hours
of their time in looking after the ,
details of, this fund.
.In June of 1971, the Public Trus-
tee asked for an accounting of-this
hind and that it be turned over to
the Public Trustee. Elmer C.
Bell, Q.C. of Exeter, board solic-
itor , asked the Huron County
Board of Education to take over:
the administration of this Rind
and the folloWing motion was
made:
"ResOlved that the. Huron County
Board of Education-do
thereby consent'to its appoint-
ment as Trustee of the Alexander .
MacKenzie Education Endowment
Fund provided under the Will of
the late Alexander MacKenzie,
and doth authorize the execution
of a Consent by the Chairman of
this Board and doth further atithor-
ize its solicitor to make appliCa- •
tion to the court to have the funds
in the above, mentioned trust trans-
ferred to it as Trustee forthwith.
after a Court audit thereof."
Mr. Bell then read the motion
in the Supreme Court of Ontario
on the 24th day of June 1971 and
the Outcome of this was as fallows,
"That Mrs. Isobel MacKenzie
do pass the accounts and transfer
any property or securities of the
Alexander MacKenzie EndoWment
Fund to Victoria and Grey Trust
Company and that Victoria and
Grey Trust Company act as a trus-
tee for the Fund."
In a letter dated August. 3rd
1971 to the Huron County Board '
of EduCation,. Mr. Bell stated the
following "It is my opinion that
while a Mist company was proper
for administrative detail, ultim-
ate responsibility for policy should
lie with a Board of
Education. However, , while the
Bruce Canty Board of Education .
did not want to act, it opposed"
the appointment of the Huron
Board. It appears that no audit. of
the accounti*can take place until
Septeffiber or October , so that in
that time no action of any kind -
will take place in connection
with the Fund."
As we see it, the fund would
have been best handled by the
local committee who were more
aware of the local needs and the
original intent, and were prepared
to administer the fund as a ser-
vice to their community.
Failing this, and as a second
choice, the fund might well have
been handled by one of tlAe Coun-
ty school boards involved , either
Bruce or Huron. Bruce was not
willing to act, but opposed the
appointment of Huron, who was
willing. Our observations of past
agreements and disagreements
between these two county school '
boards would seem to make this
Kedictable.
In turn the. Public Trustee award-
ed the responsibility of the fund to
Victoria and Grey. Victoria and
Grey is a business interested in
showing a profit and as such would
be expected to charge the normal
administration fee for such a ser-
vice. No one would expect other-
wise.
However they are in no position
to know the education needs of the
area and the result will likely be
an advisory committee of some
type , who will , be paid in all like-
lihood.
The administration costs of the
fund will continue to , spar and Mr.
MacKenzie's original intention of
assisting, students will be, lost in
administration red tape. All this
to replace an effective local ad-
ministrative body working in the
community interest, at no charge.
Will we ever understand the
thinking of the Public Trustee
far removed from the local scene
and about as unaware and
linc,soncerned about the local fund
as anyone could be?
Whether the fund is .any closer
to becoming operative again is
anyone's guess. It has taken three
years now to transfer the fund from
one administration board to an-
other.. While bureauctats drag
•
WEJINESIDAY, gAY
their feet, students, who
need of these funds and e
them are bypassed,
The fund now contains
$30 ,000 representing the
capital investment, alon
$10 ,890 in the bank and
$20 ,000 out on loans,
Time will tell how sue
Victoria and Grey will be
arranging for the repaym
these loans of $20,000,
board were doing very to
when stripped of their po
years ago.
What was a very unique
valuable education fund
area has been fragmented
eroded thanks to, the PA
Trustee, sitting high into
Towers of Toronto, and
caring. about an education
a town called Lucknow,
We had people in this
ity who did care, but the
Trustee wiped them out a
efforts have resulted, in a
'which has been frozen for
A disgrace I This would
generous comment on the
ling of the matter.
• r.
Students , Wait... Bureaucrats Twiddle..
Public Trustee Puts Alexander
MacKenzie-Eradowment Fund
in Limbo For Past Three Years
members would no longer be able
to administer the fund. •
The result is that, this fund has
sat dormant since June of 1971
without a dollar being used for rn the
original purpose intended by Mr.
MacKenzie. In June of 1971, the
Ontario Supreme Court ordered
that the records be transferred to
Victoria and Grey Trust Company
who would act as trustee for the
fund. That's three years ago,
and during this time money that
had been promised by the local
administration board has not been
paid to legitiniate bursary recip-
ients arid those who were to re-
ceive loans. The local board has
been helpless in the matter.
We said that the fund had re-
mained dormant, but this is not
altogether true. In that time leg-
al fees of $3,553.25 have been
sucked from the fund, expenses
incurred in the change-Over from
the local administration to the
new trust fund.
It should be pointed out that
during the '28 year history Of the
fund , local administratorS worked
for nothing, in the interest of
theit.corninunity.
Perhaps a brief run-down of the
fund's history would enlighten
Sentinel readers who' may not be
familiar with the matter. •
In the will of the late Alexand-7
er MacKenzie of Kinloss, who
died in 1943, $32,000 was
left to boys graduating from Luck-
now High School area in order ".
that they could obtain educational
financial. assistance to further
their education.
W. B. Anderson/, Thos, Smith.
and P. W. Hoag were the first ad-
ministrators of the Alexander,,;v1ac•
Kenzie EndoWment Fund.. The
original amount was invested in •
various securities and bonds. The
fund is unique in that boys only
were to be the beneficiaries. The
late Mr. MatKenzie was a bach-
elor.
In 1961, the Lucknow High
School Board took over the,admin-
istration and Mrs: Robert (Isobel)
MacKenzie was their secretary.
As there were only.a few boys at
that time availing themselves of
this money, it soon accumulated
to over $60,000,