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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2010-09-23, Page 7THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2010. PAGE 7. A group of former students of the Belgrave one-room school, gathered at the home of Bill Coultes on Sept. 15, following what might have been the last Belgrave, Blyth, Brussels School Fair. Mr. and Mrs. Jim Young,Strathroy; Doris (Young) Hodginsand Marguerite (Young) McRoberts,Lucan; Audrey McKay and MarleneLeedham, Wingham; Les and DonnaShaw, Alice Nicholson, and CliffordCoultes, all of Belgrave, enjoyedreminiscing about their days in school together. Mrs. Muriel Coultes returned on Friday after spending five days with the executive of the National United Church Women at Cedar Glenn YMCA Camp at Bolton. Decisions made by this executive then filter down to the Presbyterials and Local UCW groups about concerns they have in these changing times. One of the many questionsanswered was what happens to localUCW money if a UCW closes andhas a bank account? The decision onhow this money can be spent restssolely with the local members of thatUCW.Thursday was a day for visiting in Toronto, giving the UCW executive from all over Canada a chance to see where some of their M&S dollars are being used. After a tour of the Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu Temple, (the largest Hindu temple in North America) the group enjoyed dinner at the Fred Victor Mission. This Mission is where men can come in out of the cold and then get a hot meal. It is known as “Fred’s Restaurant” where up to 70,000 meals are served a year. Nearly 10,000 men have stayed there. The church also supports the women’s hostel with up to 40 women staying there each night. The group also visited the Toronto Native Cultural Centre, which is a drop-in centre open 365 days a year. They also serve meals, provide income support, housing and operate a food bank. They have 144,000 clients and the centre is drug and alcohol free. Doug Flanders of the National office spoke to the women about Leaving a Legacy, and how that can be done. Rev. Michael Blair the new Executive Minister of Communities in Mission spoke on changes as the National Office. This is a new portfolio, and he said more cuts will have to be made in two weeks. Plans were announced for the 50th anniversary of United Church Women, to be held at Redeemer College, Alliston, July 23-27, 2012. Mrs. Betty Turcott of Bowmanville, was installed as the new president on Friday morning. Becky and Dave Bartman have completed renovations at Belgrave Variety and will celebrate Saturday, Oct. 9 with several attractions including a hot dog barbecue withproceeds to Belgrave UnitedChurch.The community extends birthdaygreetings to Jean Nethery whocelebrated her 80th birthday onSunday, Sept. 19 with an OpenHouse at the Anglican Church Parish Hall in Blyth for birthday cake and a visit with any donations going to the Food Bank, as well as Jim Walsh who celebrated his 90th birthday on Sept. 14. On Sept. 23 the UCW will meet in the lower hall at Knox United Church at 7:30 p.m. The speaker is Joy Rutherford of Burnside Engineering. Worship at Knox United Church at 10:15 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 26 will be an exchange with Rev. Larry Sayers of Dungannon Charge for the Church Anniversary. Board responses filed Here serve this Hot dogs were complimentary on Saturday at the Open Well in Belgrave, held at the Belgrave Pumphouse. Henri Frischknecht, left, and Mason Weber were on cooking duty. (Vicky Bremner photo) Graduation Congratulations to Jacklin Falconer and Ken McDonald on the completion of Masters degrees. Jacklin graduated with a Master of Arts Musicology in Choral Conducting from York University and Ken graduated with a Master of Arts Musicology in Jazz Composition also from York University. We are very proud of your accomplishments and wish you all the best advancing your careers. Kevin, Lorie, Orie and Corine NEWS FROM BELGRAVE By LindaCampbellCall 357-2188 PEOPLE AROUNDBELGRAVE Continued from page 1 letter, signed by Zurich Public School parent council representative Doug Schade and Zurich community ARC representative Tom Roes. Thirdly, the group believes the board should have honoured a motion, supported by a majority of ARC members, to have their meetings chaired by an “independent facilitator” instead of an Avon Maitland superintendent. “The director of education and the trustees chose not to act on these motions,” states the letter from Schade and Roes. “Their failure to act and assist the ARC in completing their task clearly seems to be a contradiction of the spirit of collaboration and consultation in their policy.” According to Avon Maitland superintendent Mike Ash, communities are granted 30 days following a school board decision to collect enough signatures to request an administrative review. The school board then has 30 days to review the petition and submit a response to the concerns raised. At a regular board meeting Tuesday, Sept. 14, Ash informed trustees that the board has submitted its response in both cases. Both the petitions and the Board’s reports can be viewed at www.amdsb.ca. Minister of Education Leona Dombrowsky now has 30 days to decide if administrative reviews will be granted. If granted, an independent expert will be named to conduct the review. Ash expects the minister’s decision should be made known later this month. In an interview after the meeting, the superintendent noted that an administrative review was granted a year ago in the case of the Avon Maitland board’s planned closure of Blyth Public School. That review upheld the board’s decision. More anger over decision Continued from page 6 after the 2012 provincial elections; proposed sex education for third- graders – which was quickly rescinded; the HST, which most of the electorate was against, but will lead to an increase of $3 billion in extra provincial tax revenue; the $1.2 billion wasted on the eHealth; the promises of no new taxes, prior to introducing a health care premium which over time has contributed $15 billion to provincial coffers, but with little accountability as to its reinvestment; the increase in provincial employees on the Sunshine List, together with the need for increased high cost consultants, and on and on. And kids in need cannot afford school supplies – an extra school tax. Does anyone remember the Abbott and Costello comedy routine “Who’s On First”, and how confused you were with all the double talk in the skit. A lot of what we’ve been exposed to has been double talk, which has left me pretty fed up. We have a municipal election coming up on October 25. It’s an old saying, but true: If you’re not part of the solution, you may be part of the problem. Remember to exercise your franchise and vote. I will be… Greg Sarachman, Blyth.