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Home My WebLink AboutThe Citizen, 2015-05-21, Page 1CitizenTh e $1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, May 21, 2015 Volume 31 No. 20 CELEBRATION - Pg. 16 Planning for E. Wawanosh 150th celebration continues GARDENS - Pg. 9 Blyth gardening group begins its second life Publications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0 INSIDE THIS WEEK: Devastating An early-morning fire outside of Auburn claimed a barn in a remarkable way on May 13. The fire took less than half an hour to burn the structure to the ground, but County Road 25 was closed for hours that day as a result. While the call was made early and Fire Department of North Huron firefighters were on scene, the structure was fully engulfed before anything could be done except contain the damage to the structure. Assistance was called in from several area fire departments, including Goderich and Central Huron, to keep the blaze contained. (Denny Scott photo) Barn Dance this weekend in Blyth While some members of Huron County Council have been critical of the process thus far, those at the head of G2G Inc., which is responsible for the Goderich to Guelph Rail Trail, insist they have been open, honest and transparent over the past few years. Paul VanderMolen and Chris Lee of G2G Inc. were in Goderich on Wednesday, May 13 to speak to council and answer questions just weeks after the non-profit, charitable organization announced that the trail, which has proven to be controversial in some circles, would be opening on July 1. VanderMolen was very positive about the trail at the meeting, saying that recent activity at the Ontario Legislature, and the Supporting Ontario’s Trails Act, was attempting to cut through much of the red tape faced by those attempting to get trails up and running. He told council that the work being done at the provincial level is really attempting to “break down all the barriers” when creating a trail. Once open, VanderMolen said, the trail will be the longest off-road trail in Ontario and a significant economic development tool for Huron and Perth Counties and beyond. Lee told council that while the trail has just started making news within the last 12 months or so, he and VanderMolen have been working to make the trail a reality for over three years. The vision, he told councillors, has always been to provide users, whether they’re hiking or cycling, with a continuous experience from end to end. The agreement for G2G Inc. to lease the trail’s land from the province has been approved in principle, Lee said, but it is meant as a bit of a “stop-gap” during which any issues will be ironed out, presumably by the July 1 opening date. With G2G Inc. assuming the lease, Lee said, it was not meant to block or impede the county in any way, but simply to move the process along. He mentioned a number of grant opportunities with which the trail fits perfectly, such as active transportation and healthy lifestyles. He said that there are limited windows for that funding and if G2G Inc. waited too long, the funding might disappear. A work plan is currently in the works with Del Property Management Solutions, Lee said, but it is the hope of G2G Inc. that the work plan will be complete and in place by the July 1 opening date. In additional to potential grants, Lee told council that Regional Tourism Organization (RTO) 4 has been aware and supportive of the project for some time and has funds set aside, having named it a priority project for the group going forward. VanderMolen added that in the name of transparency and keeping the lines of communication open, appointments are already in the process of being made with many of Huron County’s lower-tier Grant Rufus Sparling, founder of Sparling’s Propane, passed away peacefully and surrounded by family, May 13, 2015, at Clinton Public Hospital, Clinton, Ontario. Grant was 91 years old. He was born in Plympton Township, Ontario, a farmer’s son, brother, banker, soldier, entrepreneur, community champion, husband, father and uncle, friend. Grant was blessed to grow up in a loving, disciplined farm family where, as one of six children, he learned about hard work and mutual accountability and practical jokes. Beyond his family and faith, Grant’s perspective was shaped in large part by the profound impact of The Great Depression and World War II. As a young man, Grant’s ambition was to become a lawyer, but circumstances did not permit higher education. That meant self-reliance, hard work, life lessons and gratitude for every opportunity, including his first job at the Bank of Commerce in Forest in 1941. At that time, there were so many people looking for work – and there were so few jobs. During the bank interview process, Grant and the other candidates were handed sheets of foolscap (paper) and, using a quill pen, were instructed to complete a series of calculations. Grant’s gift for math enabled him to land the job and he began a banking career that The Blyth and District Community Centre and nearby campground will be the perfect place to find some musical tunes this weekend as the 18th annual Barn Dance Jamboree, hosted by the Barn Dance Historical Society starts on Thursday. The event runs from May 21 until May 24, though some of the more popular public events don’t start until Friday night. May 22, the celebration really kicks off with the bluegrass show and open stage on Friday evening at 7 p.m. Barn Dance Historical Society Board of Directors Treasurer Gord Baxter said the bluegrass show is going to feature a new band to the barn dance, the Peace River Band. “They’re from Niagara Falls,” he said. “They’re new to our stage but they are supposed to be a really good bluegrass band.” Saturday marks the beginning of the musical flea market and silent auction at the community centre. An open stage is also set up in the community centre for public performances, though pre- registration for performers is required. The true party for the evening, however, starts at 6 p.m. That is when visitors can pick up their arm- bands for the Barn Dance show on the arena floor at the community centre. Campers’ armbands are included in the price of the weekend. Chairman of the Barn Dance event Bill Simmermaker advises that visitors should get there early. We always have around 1,100 people in the arena,” Simmermaker said. “It’s always packed.” This year, as it has been for several years, Jim Swan is the Master of Ceremonies for the event. The Barn Dance Show band features Al Alderson on bass, Fred Lewis on lead guitar, Bill Norris on fiddle, Grant Heywood on drums and Doug Dietrich on steel guitar. Special guests include Kiley Joe Masson, Linsey Beckett, Bill Murray, Sue Weber Bell and Paul Newell. Baxter said that Masson and Beckett were artists to watch. “Linsey is from the Beckett family,” he said. “They’re fairly famous here. She just got back from a European tour last year.” Masson is a highly skilled piano player according to Baxter and not to be missed either. Following the show, a dance will be held until midnight on the arena floor. Sunday, things begin to wind down but not before the famous Sunday Morning Gospel Show, again at the arena. This year the show is hosted by Mary Elliott Huyzen, backed up by the Peace River Band. Meals throughout the weekend are prepared by the Blyth Lions Club including dinner on Saturday evening starting at 4:30 p.m. and breakfast on Sunday morning starting at 7:30 a.m. Tickets must be purchased in advance for the meals. For more information, visit www.thebarndance.ca The Citizen Celebrating 30 Years 1985~2015 G2G process transparent insists VanderMolen Blyth loses Sparling’s founder By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Continued on page 15 Continued on page 10