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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2013-02-07, Page 14PAGE 14. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2013.Winthrop construction delayed due to rising waters The weather has covered almost everything this past week. Cold, rain, ice, mild temperatures, flooding, fog, high winds, colder, flurries, sun and a groundhog who did not see his shadow, so an early spring ahead! Last weekend the snowmobileswent by our place constantly. Thenthe snow disappeared and there were very sad snowmobile people. Mid- week and there was only mud. Then the snow began again and by Saturday, the groomer was back on the trail trying to get it ready again and so were the sleds. Obviously, if there is snow – you’ve got to go! Congratulations to Rob and Andrea Shortreed on the birth of a precious little girl. The birth of Loralie has made a very happy family. The four big brothers, Adam, Bryce, Liam and Emmitt are very excited. Congrats to all! Our get-well wishes go out to Kelly Dalton who is a patient in aLondon Hospital. He has undergonea valve replacement and we hope he recovers quickly and soon returns to the area. Returning to the area are Paul and Carolyn Somerville and Murray and Cathy McNichol. They spent about five days in Las Vegas celebrating Murray’s 50th birthday. They did a little gambling and saw some very nice shows. The work continues in Winthrop with the digging out of the property. It became a little tricky to dig on Monday when the rising waters began to fill the hole. Tuesday morning the water was at the top. A pumper truck arrived to try and get rid of some of the water, but I would think it was a lost cause, as workersdid not stay all day.The former Traviss home that was torn down a week ago, had the backhoe there this week and the remnants of the house loaded and taken away. The foundation was buried and the lot cleaned up. Looking at the lot, it is already hard to believe that there was actually room for a building there. February is Heart and Stroke month and canvassers will be calling at your door. I have been organizing the Heart and Stroke campaign in Grey Township for 25 years and I have some very dedicated volunteers who give of their time year after year. Please “make death wait” and support this years campaign. The Cranbrook dart league met onJan. 30 and all 24 players were onhand. They had a fun evening with Sarah Klingenberg hitting the high score of 101 for the ladies and John Gillis hitting 138 for othe men. A delicious lunch was enjoyed by all before they headed home. Celebrating birthdays and kicking off February include Thys deJong, Sarah Mitchell, Brian Williamson, John Driscoll, Marilyn McDonald, Mike Durrell, Amy Whyte, Pamela Hackwell, Abby McNichol, Arnold den Dekker, Katie Dionne, George Kruse, Heather Williamson, Dianne Williamson, Emilee Bennett, Cody Nichol and Lois Todd. Happy birthday to all. By Jo-Ann McDonald Call 887-6570 PEOPLE AROUNDWALTON Wacky hair Students at North Woods Elementary School celebrated their school spirit with a wacky hair day last week. Shown sporting some wild doos are, from left, Abby Strome, Samira Rechsteiner and Amanda Morrison. (Denny Scott photo) HE donates to park At the Jan. 22 meeting, Huron East Council authorized a contribution to the Seaforth Optimists Club for up to $22,500 for improvements to the Seaforth Optimists Park. Robert Dinsmore of the Seaforth Optimists told council that the last time the fences for the baseball field at the park had been updated was in 1972 and they were due to a face- lift. However, his hope was that at the same time, the bleachers could be replaced and the field could be improved. He told council that it would be ideal to make all of the improvements at the same time, but that it would be a substantial cost to the club. Dinsmore said that if the field improvements were to be included in the project, it would total in the neighbourhood of $45,000. He said that there are currently no railings running up the sides of the bleachers and no bar across the top seat, which is a safety hazard. He told council that the club has between $15,000 and $20,000 in the bank, but that they will continue to fundraise for the project throughout the year. “We’re already committed to doing the fence,” Dinsmore told council, “so we’re going to do it anyway, but it would be good to do the rest at the same time.” Originally the club was asking for $15,000, but with the increase to the project, council decided to proceed as it has in the past with community sports projects and fund half of it. The money will be taken out of the municipality’s parkland reserve. The cap of $22,500, however, was crucial for some councillors, who felt it needed to be included after a recent project that council committed funds to went drastically over budget. “The St. Columban soccer project left a bad taste in my mouth,” said Councillor Andy Flowers. Flowers is referring to the soccer association’s plan to build a clubhouse that nearly doubled in cost while the association failed to report back to council on the increase in costs. “That’s not going to happen again,” Flowers said. When asked about the park’s usage, Dinsmore says the park is used between four and seven times a week by baseball teams of all ages, including some of the members of the Huron County Fastball League. Dinsmore told councillors that improvements were necessary if the municipality wanted to keep usage of its parks up. “A lot of teams went to Clinton when they fixed their parks up,” Dinsmore told councillors. He added that Seaforth is a tough town to fundraise in, but that the club was committed to making it work. Council approved the contribution from the municipality’s parkland reserve. NEWS FROM WALTON Looking for local heroes There are so many people out there who do so much to improve their community. Now you have a chance to say thanks. Nominate that special person for the 28th Annual Citizen Citizenship Awards. Each year a committee chooses an outstanding citizen from each of the Blyth and area and Brussels and area communities to receive an award for contribution to the community. If you know someone you think should be honoured, please fill in the ballot and send it in. You may attach a longer explanation of why you think your nominee should win, if you like. If you have nominated someone before and he or she didn't win, please feel free to try again. I nominate as Citizen of the year for I feel she/he deserves this award because Nomination Deadline April 30, 2013. Name and phone number of nominator ❑Blyth & area ❑Brussels & area By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen