The Citizen, 2011-11-17, Page 24PAGE 24. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2011.Bridges to be installed along trails
5Rs holds its 20th
annual meeting
The Brussels and Walton Trail
Blazers, with the help of the
provincial government, have made a
significant investment in
snowmobiling in the area over the
summer and now after the first snow,
they’re gearing up to hit the trails as
soon as they can.
After funding for various trail
infrastructure projects was awarded
to the Ontario Federation of
Snowmobile Clubs (OFSC) from the
provincial government, the local
club has already cleared some of its
trails and is in the process of
installing two bridges, along the
trails, which should be completed
within the next two weeks.
The club, which has been
operating in the Brussels and Walton
areas for nearly 30 years, is investing
in the future of snowmobiling in the
area with these government dollars,
says the club’s secretary-treasurer
Wayne Bennewies.
Two projects were undertaken
with the grant. The first was a
portion of the club’s trail that needed
to be straighten and cleared, which
has already been completed. The
second part of the project is the
replacement of one bridge and the
construction of a completely new
bridge.
Bennewies says the addition of thetwo bridges will make gettingaround the trails much easier forsnowmobilers travelling through the
area.
The grant awarded to the OFSC
totalled $3 million and the funds
were dispersed by the OFSC to
individual clubs. For the Trail
Blazers, the new bridges cost
$20,000 each.
“There was a safety concern,”
Bennewies says of one of the areas
that will soon have a bridge. “There
was a deep ditch and riders had to
loop up onto the road and back down
to get through that portion of the
trail.”
Once the bridge is installed,
Bennewies says, it will be located
well back of the road and it should
alleviate any safety concerns with
that portion of the trail.
As for the bridge that is being
replaced, Bennewies says some who
have been involved with the Trail
Blazers for years can’t even
remember when it was originally
built, meaning it is likely decades
old.
Bennewies says the installation of
the bridges has to happen in the next
two weeks before the weather gets
too bad because of the remote
locations in which these areas are
located.
The grant money from the
provincial government, Bennewiessays, was tourism-based, so he’shoping the improvements to thetrails will help to promote
snowmobiling in the Brussels and
Walton areas and encourage riders to
make their way to the area
throughout the winter.
“Hopefully local snowmobilers
will see this as an investment in the
local snowmobiling community as
well,” Bennewies said, adding that
the bridges are a “big investment in
the future.”
The clearing of the trail that also
happened because of the grant took
place about a month ago when a
“major clearing” was undertaken,
according to Bennewies.
Now thanks to the clearing, theclub has included washroomfacilities and a bit of a rest area,something Bennewies says was
lacking along the club’s trails.
The Brussels and Walton Trail
Blazers is a non-profit, volunteer-
driven organization and any funds
that come in from trail permits go
right back into trail maintenance and
grooming equipment, Bennewies
says.
As for the snowmobiling season,
Bennewies says the club is ready to
go and with last week’s first snow,
he’s hoping it won’t be long now.
“We’ve started staking the trail
down in our area,” he says. “We’re
ready to go. We’re geared up.”
The 5Rs Thrift Shop held its 20th
annual meeting on Oct. 26 at St.
John’s Anglican Church.
A delicious meal was enjoyed by
members and guests. The meeting
was called to order and after the
business details were handled, a trip
into the past was the order of the
day.
Several of the original members
were in attendance and between
their hilarious recalls and the photo
albums on display, a vivid picture of
the beginnings of the 5Rs came to
light. These members portrayed the
teamwork, dedication and
determination needed to pull
together their dream. They worked
hard but also had fun along the way.
Thanks to these ladies, Brussels
now has a thriving thrift shop
downtown.
Although the building is for sale,
the store will remain open for
business as usual.
Please leave your clean, gently-
used donations at the back door of
the shop. We accept all the usual
household items, including clean
gently-used clothes, books,
bedding, crocheting, pictures,
jewellery and more. We don’t accept
TVs, computers or furniture. Bags
of rags are also for sale. If you are in
doubt, please call the thrift shop at
519-887-9072.
Reduce, reuse, recycle, reclaim
and rejoice.
In preparation for the meeting the
group received a letter from the
store’s first manager Wendy Martin.
“Dear Friends in Brussels,
It is with fondness I remember my
time managing the Brussels 5Rs
Thrift Shop from 1991 to 1996.
Congratulations to the group who
shared a vision for a service that
could benefit their community and
mobilized the community to work
together for 20 years to sustain the
vision of a thrift shop in the
Brussels community.
I learned many valuable lessons
from my time at 5Rs:
• It’s important to take an
afternoon tea break with volunteers
and the addition of cream to tea
makes it so much tastier than 2 per
cent milk.
• While Caroline Kernaghan was
arranging a household display of
green things, I learned that greens
don’t clash. She reminded me that in
nature we never comment that one
shade of green tree does not match
with another shade of green.
• Some people are just so much
more creative than others. I was
always keen to return to the store on
a Tuesday after the window
decorators had performed their
magic on the window display over
the weekend. Mundane clothing
always took on a whole new look
after the window decorators had
NEWS
FROM WALTON
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What a difference a week can
make. The landscape is getting very
bare with the harvest of the corn. I
have spoken to many farmers who
are now done the harvest and only
have some plowing to do. It has been
a late harvest because of the weather,
but it is great to see it winding down.
The deer hunters had a really good
week for the hunt and the deer
population will have been thinned
down a bit. I have heard of numerous
groups that got 13, 14 and 15 deer,
so venison will be on the menu for
many in the coming months.
While travelling the roads, I would
honestly have to say, I did not see
that many gangs of hunters. I would
see a group in the morning and
maybe a group at night and
occasionally no group at all on some
afternoons. I travel over 70 kms. per
hour twice daily and used to see
groups on almost every sideroad in
years gone by. Maybe the late hunt
in December will have more hunters
out and about.
Congratulations to Jason and Erin
Baan on the birth of a little girl.
Kiera Ivy joins her siblings Kadi,
Griffin and Aquila to make a family
of six.
Our condolences to Judy and
Chris Lee on the death of Judy’s
brother-in-law Merle Glanville of
Seaforth. Our sympathies are also
extended to the Glanville families.
The Walton Hall had its first
family Christmas party on Saturday.
The Armstrong family gathered with
over 30 enjoying a turkey dinner
prepared by the hall board.
It was a surprise for Lorraine
Blake when she arrived at her cousin
Chris and Erin Blake’s home. She
knew she was going to a party, but
had no idea it was for her. Her
sisters, Heather and Lisa Blake held
a surprise 30th birthday party for her
in the shed at Chris and Erin’s.
Family and friends gathered for the
surprise and had a cool, but
enjoyable evening.
Neil and Marie McGavin were in
North Bay for the weekend. They
went to attend their son-in-law’s
surprise birthday party. Bryan Kelso
reached the 40-year milestone.
Visiting the area for the last week
or so are Alec and Gail Glanville.
They have been catching up the
relatives before the winter sets in.
They are here from Melford,
Saskatchewan.
Celebrating birthdays this past
week include Jeanne Kirkby,
Johnathon Williamson, Darcy
McCutcheon, Brian Pryce, Danielle
Ducharme, Murray Henderson,
Katie Roth, Barry Hoegy, Tristan
Rijkhoff, Pat Gillis, Michael
Grobbink, Blaine Marks, Lynne
Godkin, Charlie Glauser, Kristi
Dawn Godkin, Charles Storey and
Mark Sullivan. Happy birthday to
all.
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The Citizen
541 Turnberry St., Brussels
519-887-9114
404 Queen St., Blyth
519-523-4792
Area deer hunting begins
By Shawn LoughlinThe Citizen
By Jo-Ann
McDonald
Call
887-6570
PEOPLE AROUND
WALTON
Continued on page 26