HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2008-06-05, Page 1Tasty
Brothers, from left, McIntosh, Simon and Jackson McCutcheon were digging in to the delicious
french fries served up during St. John’s Anglican Church’s yard sale on Saturday morning.
Over 250 pounds of potatoes became french fries that day. (Vicky Bremner photo)
The third annual Huron
Community Matters conference was
held in Brussels last week,
squeezing days of information and
community improvement into less
than 12 hours.
While it began on the evening of
May 28, with keynote speaker,
Robin Cardozo from the Ontario
Trillium Foundation, it was May 29
that boasted the Huron Highlights
update and three workshop sessions
focusing on issues like downtown
revitalization, buying local and
economic development.
HURON HIGHLIGHTS
The morning began with a brief
overview of the steps Huron County
is taking to beef up its portfolio and
help it reach its goal of
sustainability: a recurring theme
throughout the conference.
Back by popular demand was a
short dramatic performance by two
local actors who explained
sustainability. The pair performed on
Tuesday night, and were asked back
to perform before the main
conference.
Taking on many roles, they passed
the Huron County planning
department’s sustainable Huron card
to one another like a torch, each time
with a different identity, showing
how concerns about the community
can differ based on who’s filling it
out.
The planning department has been
presenting to service groups,
councils and citizens for the last two
months, asking them to fill out
questionnaires about the present and
future of their communities.
While the same slideshow has
been shown around the county for
the last two months, there was a
follow-up presentation for those
who have seen the sustainable Huron
session before.
Rob Bundy, youth engagement co-
ordinator for the Huron Business
Development Corporation,
presented his work on a possible
outdoor adventure education facility
in Benmiller.
Bundy says the project has not
been without its challenges. He had
to brainstorm a new business that
wasn’t represented in the area, find
land on which to build the new
project, create a business plan and
eventually engage the community in
the project. Bundy says he and his
associates have been working
diligently at applying for funding
and a sustainable building design.
There is no such facility within a
100-mile radius of the county,
Bundy said, with many of the
southwestern Ontario schools
driving to Muskoka for such
excursions. The popular youth camp
option for county schools is Camp
Celtic in Lion’s Head, he said, a
course in Benmiller could easily find
a large group of students willing to
use it, Bundy added.
In addition to students, Bundy
specified that at-risk youth would be
the ideal candidates. The facility
would also be perfect for team-
building in the corporate arena.
While the group that is
undertaking the project is currently
in the process of going down a huge
checklist and there has already been
brainstorming about expansion.
The land, which has been donated
to the project by the Maitland Valley
Conservation Authority, is in
secluded Falls Reserve Conservation
Area in Benmiller and has room to
grow. Bundy says that possibly a
central activity cabin could be part
of the project and eventually cabins
to offer students overnight options
so classes could stay for days or a
week at a time.
The initial plans call for a central
building that would house offices,
washrooms and an indoor climbing
wall. Outdoors, there would be a low
rope and a high ropes aerial system
with possible expansion to follow.
Bundy says he anticipates the
main users of this facility will be
students from Grades 7-11, but it
will be useful to several different
sects, including campers, families
and service clubs, in addition to the
students and corporations.
Bundy says he hopes that the
environmental and sustainable
aspects of the project will serve as
educational tools in addition to
serving the centre’s best interests.
Bundy says that while his initial
date of September of 2009 may be
slipping away, that it isn’t
For North Huron council to make
the right decision about policing in
the township, it would be best to
have the right information.
That was the reason for a visit
from OPP Inspector Dan Grant at the
Monday night council meeting.
Grant said that while he didn’t
normally respond to media articles
he felt that he needed to address
some comments reported from an
earlier meeting. Moe Hodgson had
attended the May 20 meeting to
discuss a feasibility policing study.
The goal is to see whether it makes
sense to have Wingham Police
Services look after policing for all of
North Huron.
Grant said that the reported
information had “glaring errors” and
while he had no issue with council
looking at other policing models he
felt it was important they have the
right information before making a
decision.
Grant said he had a good working
relationship with the Wingham
police and with Chief Tim Poole.
“Regardless of what choice you
make you will get good service,” he
said.
Grant drew council’s attention to a
quote in the story (not published in
The Citizen) attributed to Hodgson.
“He said outside of Wingham, other
parts of town are only getting ‘drive
through’ service from the OPP.
‘Personally I don’t believe that’s
acceptable’.”
Grant said the OPP spend a
“considerable amount of time” in the
area. Eight officers, he said, are
stationed in Wingham. “I believe
they take great pride in the fact they
serve this community.”
Grant said that officers did 400
hours of vehicle patrol in Blyth and
East Wawanosh last year, and 140
hours of foot patrol. As well time is
spent on preventative measures.
Officers have a patrol zone, with,
of course, no fixed schedule. “That
would be counter-productive,” said
Grant.
Another quote that Grant felt was
misleading was “the OPP do the best
job they can but they are a large
organization and when the need calls
for it, their officers are sent to other
places reducing service to others.”
Grant said in 2006 when officers
were deployed to Caledonia, service
never diminished. “Hours were
backfilled with overtime at no cost to
the municipality. We commit to a
more than adequate level of service
at all times.”
Grant also said that contrary to the
Community Matters in Brussels
The health unit is concerned about
the presence of pertussis in Huron
County. Since February there have
been five confirmed cases of
pertussis in the town of Goderich. It
is unusual to see more than one or
two cases a year in Huron County.
The latest case, confirmed on May
27, is an 18-month-old child who
was ill with classic symptoms of a
whooping cough followed by
vomiting
Pertussis, also known as whooping
cough, is a highly contagious
infection. It is spread through close
contact when an infected person
talks, sneezes, or coughs. The most
serious pertussis disease occurs in
young infants, who may experience
complications such as pneumonia,
seizures and encephalitis and who
are at the greatest risk of dying from
pertussis.
Medical officer of health, Dr. Beth
Henning says she is concerned that
cases are continuing to occur. “If we
can identify the cases early,
antibiotics can be given to decrease
the severity of illness in the
individual and to help stop the
continued spread of the infection. It
is also important to ensure that
immunizations are up to date.
Vaccination against pertussis
prevents most people from getting
pertussis and prevents severe
symptoms in those who do become
sick.”
Dr. Henning says to help stop
spread of the infection, recognizing
the symptoms early and seeking
medical attention promptly is
critical.
Children who have pertussis will
have a runny nose, followed by a
cough that becomes more severe and
frequent. This may be followed by
gagging, vomiting or trouble
breathing. Sometimes after a
coughing attack, the child may give
a loud “whoop” when breathing in,
which is why the infection has been
called “whooping cough”. The
“whooping” symptom does not
always occur.
Adults also get pertussis. They
experience persistent, continuous
episodes of severe coughing. An
adult may not develop as severe a
disease as children, but can still
spread the infection to children and
other adults.
The health unit recommends that
children and adults who have these
symptoms see their health care
provider right away to be assessed.
Children and adults who have
pertussis will be prescribed
antibiotics and need to stay home
from school/work for five days.
Persons living in the same
household as a person with pertussis
may need to take the antibiotic for
five to seven days to stop the spread
of infection or the development of
the disease.
CitizenTh
e
$1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, June 5, 2008
Volume 24 No. 23BARONS RULE - Pg. 6Streak continues fornewest fastball team ELECTED - Pg. 17 Legion and Auxiliaryofficers installedANNIVERSARY- Pg. 3Youth park committee andcommunity celebratePublications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 PAP Registration No. 09244 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0INSIDE THIS WEEK:
Continued on page 6
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
Pertussis
persists
OPP
inspector
clarifies
By Bonnie Gropp
The Citizen
Continued on page 7