HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2015-07-02, Page 18THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JULY 2, 2015. PAGE 19.
Creces wins Huron-Bruce NDP nomination
Gordon welcomes provincial council challenge
Zurich native Gerard Creces will
represent the Huron-Bruce riding for
the NDP in this year’s federal
election, set for Monday, Oct. 19.
Creces won the nomination
Thursday night at the riding’s
nomination meeting, held at the
MacKay Centre for Seniors in
Goderich.
He triumphed over Jan Johnstone,
the former chair of the Bluewater
District School Board and a
longtime trustee.
Johnstone last represented the
NDP in the June 12, 2014 provincial
election, where was defeated by
incumbent Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa
Thompson of the Conservative
Party. Nearly 11,000 residents cast
their vote for Johnstone in last year’s
election, leaving her third behind
Thompson and Colleen Schenk of
the Liberals.
Creces said he was overwhelmed
when he won the nomination, saying
it was an honour to hear words of
encouragement from such long-
time, respected NDP supporters as
Tony McQuail and Willi Laurie.
The 34-year-old reporter and
musician says that he hopes to focus
on engaging Huron County’s youth,
which is becoming more
disenfranchised by the election
process as the years go by.
In an interview with The Citizen
the day after he won the party’s
nomination, Creces said the riding’s
representation had been getting
poorer with each passing year and
instead of simply criticizing, he felt
it was time for him to “put up or shut
up” so he decided to get involved.
He also felt his window of
opportunity might be closing. He
said that if he waited until the next
election, there would be four more
years of further “damage” being
done, so he felt the time was right.
In his years as a journalist, first
with the Goderich Signal Star and
the Clinton News Record, then with
The Londoner and the Strathroy Age
Dispatch, he said he saw the “game
being played” but felt it was
completely different when he got
involved. He said it gave him a new
appreciation for the many candidates
he covered in his time as a reporter
(he is now on leave from his
journalistic position while he
embarks on his campaign).
The main topics on which he
hopes to focus are the environment,
bringing good jobs to the
community and affordable day care
for families.
Creces says he hopes voters will
“take the power back” in voting for
him, rejecting the current political
climate.
He has been posting videos
frequently on YouTube where he has
discussed his stance on various
election issues and encourages those
in the riding to look him up.
Continued from page 1
River Elementary School’s
Wingham Campus and F.E. Madill
Secondary School] and since
Kindergarden I have been in four
different rural schools (which is a
much different perspective than
someone from an urban elementary
school).”
She also stated, in her application,
that being from a school that houses
students from Grade 7 to 12 givers
her a unique point of view as well.
“It is important for all students to
be represented,” she said.
Gordon will attend the second
main event for the program, a
leadership camp in Orillia, later this
month, and she said she is looking
forward to it.
“It will be more of us just giving
our opinion of schools so we can
make it better for everyone and make
it more inclusive,” she said. “I’m not
sure what we’re going to end up with
as a vision at the end, but it will be
exciting.”
Aside from the two main events,
the council meets virtually through
sub-committees they will create to
discuss matters of interest to the
organization and may be called on to
consult regarding policies or
programs in the Ministry of
Education.
Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson
said she was very glad the Gordon
was chosen.
Thompson said Gordon’s activities
through school, as ambassador for
the Elementary School Fair in
Belgrave and her work through 4-H
organizations, make her a great
voice for the area.
“She is a fantastic ambassador for
Huron County and rural areas,”
Thompson said.
For more information MSAC, visit
www.edu.gov.on.ca
Pressing the flesh
Gerard Creces, a former reporter with a number of local newspapers, won the Huron-Bruce
NDP nomination last week when a vote was held in Goderich. He beat out past NDP candidate
Jan Johnstone. Creces is seen here just before the meeting talking with long-time NDP
supporters Dirk and Peggy DeJong. (Photo submitted)
A voice for the students
Clarissa Gordon, who lives on Donnybrook Line just north of Auburn, was among 500 to 600
students who applied to the Ministry of Education’s Student Advisory Complex (MSAC)
program to help direct the growth of education across the province. Gordon was also among
the 60 students who made the cut and was named to the group. She said she wants to make
sure students in rural areas still have a voice with the Ministry. She is seen here at a recent
installment of the Elementary School Fair in Belgrave. (Photo submitted)
Mexican program
continues to grow
Doug Scrimgeour’s Mexican
emergency services project has
continued to grow in recent weeks,
and he says that the future continues
to look bright.
In an interview with The Citizen,
Scrimgeour says that since the
publishing of the story titled
“Scrimgeour’s Mexican project
yields big results” in the May 7 issue
of The Citizen, the story has made its
way throughout North America,
encouraging more partners and more
organizations to come forward.
The project has been gaining
“legitimacy” he says and many
doors have been opened in recent
weeks.
Scrimgeour has begun working
with Firefighters Without Borders,
specifically Carl and Christina
Eggiman, who have really taken the
project on and have run with it,
Scrimgeour says.
He has been lucky, he says, to find
a pair of people who are as
passionate about the cause as he is.
He has also enlisted the help of
Phil and Marg Beard of Wingham,
who have made several trips to the
Trenton/Bayside area to transfer
loads of equipment across the
province.
As the program continues to grow,
Scrimgeour says, the need has
increased and he is hoping to enlarge
the network of partners willing to
transport equipment from this area
to Bayside where it can be loaded
on a railcar for transportation to
Mexico.
The project has recently expanded
to include medical supplies,
although some work needs to be
completed.
Scrimgeour will post a list of
needed routes and pick-up and drop-
off locations at the Radford’s Gas
Bar for those interested in pitching
in. Anyone interested in helping out
can also call Scrimgeour at 519-523-
9343.
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
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