HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2011-10-06, Page 10PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2011.Several Walton-area barns demolished
The area around Walton has had
the distinct odour of smoke for the
first weekend of October. I’m sure
later this month it could be the
burning of leaves causing the smell,
but this time it is the burning of
structures.
On Friday morning, it was the
empty house on the farm of Don
Baan. The house had been used by
area fire departments this summer
for practice sessions, but it had come
to the end of its usefulness and it was
time to be gone. The high hoe was
brought in and a hole was dug and
the building knocked down and seton fire.Later on Friday, it was our barn toburn. The barn on our farm has been
down for a couple of weeks now and
some cleaning and salvaging of
some boards had taken place. We
were waiting for the wind to be in
the right direction before setting fire
to the remains. Friday was the
perfect day with the wind from the
northwest, so the smoke was
blowing towards the bush behind us.
The previous rain, of course had
made everything wet, but finally the
fire was going strong. The remnants
of the barn had been toppled into the
foundation, so the fire was contained
within the walls of the building. By
late Saturday afternoon, most of the
debris had burned and after the high
hoe stirred it up, it was into the last
pile of debris.
While the high hoe was on site, it
took five minutes to topple the silo
and now there is a very unobstructed
view of Walton.
The Brussels Fire Department wasalso called out earlier last week tothe farm of Blair Fraser. They hadsomething catch fire close to their
home and called for help in case it
spread. Everything is fine with no
injuries or damage.
Updates on those in hospital
include Ruth Sauve-Schade who is
still in Stratford awaiting a bed in
Seaforth Hospital. Barb Dunbar is in
Listowel Hospital and we hope she is
coming along. Barry Hoegy had
been in London Hospital and has
been sent home at this time and we
hope they will soon resolve his
health issues. Isabel Armstrong is
now home from hospital and is
coming along nicely.
Congratulations to Elaine Nichol
on becoming a great-grandmother
for the first time. Son Murray Nichol
and Laurie Nichol are the proud
grandparents and their daughter
Melissa and husband Andrew are
delighted at the birth of their son,
Nathaniel. The happy parents live in
Langford, B.C.
Some of the ladies of the area
gathered to celebrate a couple of
birthdays last week. The group
gathered at the Walton Inn for a late
morning breakfast and visit and to
wish birthday girls, Jennifer Vellingaand Karen Breacker happy birthday.I understand the ladies are just shy ofthe half century, so next year will be
a very special year for them. The
group gathered included Judy
Beuerman, Marlene Glanville,
Brenda Bernard, Carol and Sean
Reinink, Yolanda Gubelman,
Jeanette Robinson and the birthday
girls, Karen and Jennifer.
There were many of our area folks
away to the International Plowing
Match a week ago. Competitors
included some McGavins, Dodds
and Townsends. Congratulations to
Jacob McGavin who won the
Reserve Championship in the 16-20
class. He received a $2,500
scholarship and he qualifies for the
Canadian Championships next
October in 2012. Paul Dodds
finished third in the Ontario class
and Brian McGavin came out of
retirement to plow in the over-35
class. Brian finished third in the
class. George Townsend finished
ninth in the antique class. There were
area folks there to cheer on our local
competitors including Bob and Rene
Richmond, Fred and Teuni Smith,
Ruth Townsend and Jeff McGavin to
name a few.
Returning from a trip to England
and a wedding are two local couples
and friends from Wingham. Don and
Pat Dalton, Neil and Marie
McGavin, and Jim and Betty Ross
joined Keith and Bonnie McMillan
at their son, Ian McMillan’s wedding
in London, England.
The group was away about 10
days and they kept quite busy. The
first night after checking in, the bride
and groom, Sheena and Ian, took
them out to a local pub. The group
was able to walk to Kensington
Palace to see where Princess Diana
lived after separating from Prince
Charles. One half is also the home
for William and Kate when they are
in London. They toured Hyde Park,
which is 650 acres, and they saw
the memorial fountain that was
erected in memory of Princess
Diana.
The group then travelled by hop-
on/hop-off bus. They spent the entire
day hopping on and off the bus to see
the sights of London. They attended
the Prince Edward Theatre to see the
performance of Jersey Boys and it
was excellent. The next day they
went to Covent Gardens, which is
like our own market garden in
London, Ontario and went to the
famous Harrod’s store. They report
that the prices were a little over their
heads, but it was interesting to look
around and dream.
It was off to Buckingham Palace
the next morning and they went on
the tour. They saw the beautiful state
rooms, decorated with gold and
beautiful paintings and stayed to see
the ’’changing of the guard’’,
although because of the crowd, it
was very difficult to see. They then
went to see the Royal Mews. This is
where the horses and carriages are
kept for the royals. The people who
work there, live above the stables
in apartments. They also saw the
limo that Kate rode in to her
wedding.
Our own Walton girl, Carali
McCall Hughes lives in London and
the group went to visit with her later
that day. Carali was sitting outside
on the steps of their flat when they
arrived, excited to see some Walton
folks. Carali and Daniel gave them a
walking tour of Primrose Hill where
they live and they stopped in at the
local pub. They then took the tube
(subway) and went to the London
Eye. This is a very large ferris wheel
that moves so slowly, it feels like
you are not moving at all. What a
view at night! The lights of London
are breathtaking. Big Ben was well
lit and in the distance you could see
Buckingham Palace and many more
places of interest.
The couple graciously showed
them a bit more of London and then
the group had dinner together, after
which they said their sad goodbyes.
The group became quite familiar
with using the tube and went to the
Tower of London the next day. This
was originally an old palace in
medieval times and a lot of history
was learned by the group. The one
part of the tower is where the Crown
Jewels are kept. The pieces there are
of pure gold and are used for
baptisms, coronations, etc. A
lovely reception for the 20
Canadians was enjoyed on Friday
evening. A trio of Neil, Pat and Don
went to the Victoria and Albert
Museum on Saturday morning.
Museums are all free to get into in
London.
It was finally time for the wedding
and it was held at St. Mary the
Boltons Anglican Church. It was a
beautiful, sunny warm day for the
formal affair, with every gentleman
wearing a tuxedo. The bride, Sheena,
came down the aisle first, as is the
English custom to her handsome
groom, Ian. Following the wedding,
the guests were transported by
double-decker bus to the Victoria
and Albert Museum for the dinner
and reception. The foyer of the
museum is quite beautiful with
guards everywhere to keep guests in
the designated reception area of the
museum. The ladies report seeing
some very beautiful gowns and
fascinators worn by some of the
guests. It was truly a wonderful and
unique wedding experience for the
Walton folks.
They report that London is a very
large, busy city and driving on the
wrong side of the road would take
some getting used to. The traffic is
really fast and busy and one had to
be careful crossing the streets.
Painted on the pavement were signs
to advise pedestrians to look left or
right before crossing. The group
spent Sunday going to London
Tower, walking across London
Bridge and strolling along the
Thames River. It was then time to
come home after a lovely 10-day
visit to London and the celebration
of Ian and Sheena’s wedding.
By Jo-Ann
McDonald
Call
887-6570
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The Citizen
Two Walton couples
vacation in England