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The Citizen, 2011-09-08, Page 1CitizenTh e $1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, September 8, 2011 Volume 27 No. 35PLOWING- Pg. 12McGavin wins big atInternational Match FESTIVAL - Pg. 19 Young Company makesmain stage debutDONATION- Pg. 9Blyth girl donates hair tochildhood cancerPublications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0INSIDE THIS WEEK: ESTC holds grand opening with 50th Thresher Reunion Surprises planned for last School Fair Benmiller declared disaster area A big week ahead For the 50th annual reunion of the Huron Pioneer Thresher and Hobby Association, organizers began the event a little early this year. The reunion, which will run throughout this weekend, was kicked off last Saturday with a Barndance performance at the Blyth and District Community Centre and then the good times continued Sunday morning with a Gospel sing-a- long on Sunday in Shed 3. (Vicky Bremner photo) The annual Belgrave, Blyth and Brussels School Fair will take place on Sept. 14 in Belgrave and this year is significant in that this will be the final fair under its current name. “This one is important because it’s the last one,” said organizer Mel Coultes. “The kids will all be going to the new school next September and we won’t be able to continue under the current name.” For government and tax purposes (the fair is officially listed as a non- profit organization) the fair will not be able to continue under its current name. Coultes says she hopes new organizers will start up a new fair in order to continue the tradition, but she’s not sure how much she’ll be able to help out personally. “If they want to restart the fair, we would be happy to help them restart,” she said. Coultes, in the years she has been involved with the fair, has seen her share of work contributed from the schools involved, which is one of the reasons she is disappointed the fair won’t be able to continue in its current form. She would, however, like to see it continue on in some form. “I would like to see it continue on, but because of the community aspect,” she said. “These are three schools that have just worked so hard over the years.” Coultes says she has a distinct family history with the fair, as the Coulteses have been involved with the fair for years. She has worked with the fair for eight years personally. This year, because it will be the last in the fair’s current history, Coultes has some tricks up her sleeve. She hopes some of the features she’s hoping to add this year will make this year’s fair one of the best in its history. She’s hoping the added nostalgia this year will help remind people what they’re losing with the closing of schools in Blyth, Brussels and Belgrave next fall. Coultes is in the process of inviting past Top Grade 8 students back to march in the annual parade. She is also hoping to set up an exhibit of past school work and fair winners that will serve as a kind of “fair museum” to work through the decades of history at the fair. Personally, Coultes says she has a lot of schoolwork she made specifically for the fair that she still has. She will be bringing these pieces in for display. In addition, she is hoping to include some surprise classes and displays for the last year. Coultes is also hoping to open certain special classes to the public. She made this decision in hopes of including as many people as possible. She is hoping for a poster category, a poem category and an essay category. There will be different age classes for each category in hopes of receiving as many entries as possible for the last year of the fair. For the essay category, the top three entries describing what the fair means to you from each class will be published in The Citizen after the fair. There are only so many expansions Coultes says the planning committee can make due to the fair’s limited funding. Overall, however, Coultes says that all the little things about the fair add up to one big chunk of life experience that many kids won’t be able to receive after this year, unless something changes. “The fair is full of life skills,” she said, “and those are invaluable.” Coultes is still actively seeking volunteers for the fair. Anyone interested in donating their time to the last-ever Belgrave, Blyth and Brussels School Fair can reach Coultes at (519) 887-8340 or e-mail her at tmcoultes@ hurontel.on.ca The Blyth Emergency Services Training Centre (ESTC) will be unveiling all the changes made as part of a major upgrade started in August of last year. The unveiling, which is slated for Sept. 9, will include an open house from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and a grand opening ceremony for the new building at 2 p.m. The centre features upgraded classroom space, live fire exercises, multiple classrooms and many amenities that trainees felt the previous facilities were missing. The centre can also double as an emergency command centre should a disaster happen in North Huron or in a neighbouring community. The building has been built to withstand many disasters. Fire Department of North Huron Chief John Black said that many of the changes were indicated as necessary by a survey trainees filled out after their time at the ESTC. “We had surveys after training seminars and one thing that students always felt would be good to have would be washrooms and shower facilities,” Black said. “For the six years before the upgrade, we had one classroom and a port-a-potty.” The “dirty” side of the centre, or the side where trainees will come wearing their gear, features heated floors and decontamination showers for gear, as well as a gear room with lockers for up to 45 students and instructors installed. It also houses a laundry room for turnout gear and a hose tower that can hold approximately 30 hoses, allowing them to be drained. The apparatus bay can hold up to 12 vehicles while charging their electrical systems and is designed to be used for different emergency vehicles. “This is a true multi-purpose facility,” Black said. “We can host courses for all emergency disciplines.” The “clean” side features large classrooms with projectors and screens, a kitchen that will be furnished through the efforts of local firefighters, and a patio on which food can be prepared through gas hook ups. The ESTC’s new building will also house the servers for computers and offices for instructors as well as a meeting room for approximately 10 people. A small museum will be held in the front of the centre where the fire department’s 1929 REO fire truck, Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh (ACW) council is hoping to reduce the red tape people with tornado- related damage have to go through as they attempt to rebuild. Areas of ACW and Central Huron were both hit by the same storm, and possibly by the same tornado that tore apart Goderich on Sunday, Aug. 21. ACW held a special meeting of council to declare Benmiller a disaster area for the purposes of the Ontario Disaster Relief Assistance Program (ODRAP). This will allow any individuals near Benmiller with proven tornado damage to apply for funds from the $5 million Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty put aside to help with the By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen By Denny Scott The Citizen Continued on page 16 By Denny Scott The Citizen Continued on page 7