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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2015-05-28, Page 9THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MAY 28, 2015. PAGE 9. Zwep, veterans take remarkable trip to Netherlands The days keep us guessing. Do we wear shorts, sweaters, warm coats or maybe shorts again? Hopefully the weather will soon decide to just be warm. We offer get well wishes to Shirley Wheeler, as she is a patient in Wingham Hospital. We hope she is improving and will soon be home. Congratulations to Michelle Blake on receiving an Excellence in Education Award from the Avon Maitland District School Board earlier this month. The board recognizes the efforts of people who make our schools a better place to learn and work. Michelle has been an educational assistant since 2005 in many schools within the board and a educational credential evaluator since 2011. She was described by her peers as a fun person who delivers an exceptional learning experience for those in her classroom. She has created inquiry centres in her class and has created an inquiry based learning environment. She was described as the “go-to” girl, the passionate bargain hunter for class materials, a craft innovator and a person who spent time setting up her classroom activities outside her regular paid day and did it with unlimited energy and passion. These are very well deserved accolades for a wonderful lady. Congrats to Michelle! The McDonald family gathered at the home of Adam and Kelly Jarosz to celebrate Owen Jarosz’s first birthday, on Saturday. They had the Jarosz family as well for a barbecue and Owen took it all in stride. An easy-going little fellow with so many folks around. He was a messy little man after diving into the birthday cake, but so cute! Returning from another trip of a lifetime is Jane Zwep. Jane left on May 1 to join a group of our Canadian veterans to celebrate the 70th Anniversary of Freedom in the Netherlands. The flight over was amazing as KLM did an extraordinary job of honouring our veterans. There were 50 veterans on the plane and each of them was pinned with a white carnation to show gratitude and respect. Every veteran was also given a “Delftsblauw” salt and pepper shaker set. There were special headrests on the seats marking the 70th anniversary. Just before landing, three bagpipers were asked to play music which filled the airplane – waking everyone and sending chills down their spines. As they approached Schipol Airport, they saw the flower fields from the windows, what a sight to see from the air. When they landed, the plane was escorted down the runway with emergency vehicles – all giving the veterans a salute. The fire brigade welcomed the veterans with a water canon salute known as the “Shower of Affection.” The fire trucks sprayed water over the plane to form a rainbow as they went through. Jane realized at this point she was in for an emotional and memorable trip. Jane’s group consisted of approximately 35 people including five veterans with family, friends and others like Jane who wanted to participate in this celebration. They stayed in a town called Zutphen. It is one of the oldest cities in Holland and very historic. Other veterans were spread out amongst five other cities close by. They all joined together for memorial services in the towns of Groesbeek, Holten and Wageningen. The Right Honourable Stephen Harper and his wife Laureen attended these ceremonies and spoke so proudly of the Canadian veterans. Their town of Zutphen had many events taking place which included a parade, concerts, tours of the town and visits to museums. The veterans were treated like royalty. On their last day, there was a huge parade and concert in the town of Apeldoorn. The veterans rode in old army vehicles and everyone wanted to shake their hands, especially the children. They all said “thank you for freeing us”. Princess Margriet was also in Apeldoorn and took time to meet with the veterans and talk with them. She was the Dutch Princess born in Canada during the time of the war and is still known to the veterans as Canada’s Princess. Jane reports she was overwhelmed by the love that the Dutch still have for our Canadian veterans after 70 years. The care they take in looking after the cemeteries of our fallen soldiers is incredible – it is really a sight to see. Jane’s trip was made even more meaningful, as this year marked 65 years since her parents immigrated to Canada. She relays how thankful she is to have had the opportunity to celebrate this occasion with our Canadian veterans. Welcome back to Jane and an unforgettable trip and we thank her for sharing her experience with all of us. Visiting in the area last week was Don and Pat Nolan. They had a chance to visit with old friends and had lunch with Gerry and Anne Ryan. The Walton Raceway had a good turnout of RC race cars on the weekend. The remote-controlled cars have their own course to race on and the ability of the drivers is amazing, controlling the cars through the course. The cars are very speedy and it is really something to see. A good crowd attended the pig roast at Paul and Cheryl Ryan’s in honour of the upcoming wedding of nephew Adam Bauer. He is the son of Doug and Sheila Bauer. A large crowd attended the doe and doe for Joan Smith and Lisa Glanville Saturday night at the Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre. Lots of fun and games of chance were held during the evening. The wedding is planned for July. Congratulations to the Jam Jar Pub & Eatery and all the sponsors of the first cruise night held in Brussels on Friday evening. There were approximately 70 classic vehicles in attendance on the nice night. The ladies slo-pitch season began on the cool Thursday evening last week. There are 14 teams in the league with seven diamonds being used weekly. The Walton Wonders played in Walton and started the season with a really good game against the Diehard team from Ethel. Great pitching, great fielding and a very low score of 4-1 for the Diehards. There’s always next week for a win! Duff’s United Church is celebrating its 150th anniversary on June 7. The church board hopes to have a full congregation to mark the occasion. The guest speaker will be Steve Hildebrand of Egmondville United Church and the lunch is being provided by the same. We hope to see many families in attendance as this will be the last anniversary celebrated by the church. Celebrating birthdays this past week include Darrell Dalton, Mary Pennington, Owen Jarosz, Teegan McGavin, Kaleb Wilts, Sharon Dalton, Scott McDonald, David Perrie, Jolene McNichol, Tavis Machan, Rachel Grosvenor, Deanna Searle, Miles Linton, Rod Fritz, Thea Rijkhoff and Marisa Curreri. Happy birthday to all. July 20th-23rd Mark your calendars and tell your friends to plan on coming to SonSpark Labs Vacation Bible School in the Blyth United Church (442 Mill Street) this summer! Pre-registration: tinyurl.com/blythvbs2015 SAVE THE DATE Let us Wash Your Drapes Blyth Laundromat 191 Westmoreland St., Blyth 519-523-9687 MEETING NOTICE MUNICIPALITY OF MORRIS-TURNBERRY The upcoming meetings for the Municipality of Morris-Turnberry will be held: Tuesday June 2 at 7:30 pm Regular Council Meeting Tuesday June 16 at 7:30 pm Regular Council Meeting See histories and historic photographs on the Huron History section of our website www.northhuron.on.ca The Citizen A tourism champion Patricia Hamilton, centre, of the Huron County Museum and Historic Gaol was the winner of this year’s Tourism Champion Award for her significant contributions to Huron County tourism through the museum and gaol, as well as many other co-operative tourism projects throughout the county. Hamilton was awarded recently at the Huron Tourism Association’s annual event last month. She was presented with her award by last year’s winner Jim Lee of Brussels, left, and Cindy Fisher, Huron County Tourism Co-ordinator. (Photo submitted) NEWS FROM WALTON By Jo-Ann McDonald Call 887-6570 PEOPLE AROUND WALTON TOLL-FREE 1-877-513-5333 Beat the temptation.