HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2008-06-19, Page 1Family affair
It’s a great day for father and son at the Blyth Legion and Radford Group fishing derby, and
even better if Grandma comes along too. Two-year-old Tyson Merner, Nora Eckert and Mike
Merner were among those lining the banks of Radford’s Pond, south of Blyth on Sunday, in
the hopes of hooking the biggest catch. While rains came in later in the day, sun shone for the
morning event. (Vicky Bremner photo)
A number of bear sightings in the
last two weeks have Huron County
all joining together in “the bear
scare.”
While there were several bear
sightings last week spanning from
Walton-area to Bayfield and
Wroxeter all the way up to
Kingsbridge, not all were confirmed,
and both the Ministry of Natural
Resources and the Ontario
Provincial Police are stressing that it
is unlikely that anyone in the county
will encounter a bear.
According to Const. Joanna Van
Mierlo sightings in the Walton area
and Wroxeter were both confirmed,
with the Wroxeter sighting coming
complete with photos. From the
photos, Bev Stevenson, fish and
wildlife specialist for the Ministry of
Natural Resources in Clinton said
the bear appeared to be a yearling
bear.
Stevenson also said the most
recent sighting, which would have
been late Thursday into early Friday,
has been confirmed as well, where a
bear did damage to some beehives in
the Kingsbridge area.
At time of publication, this was
the most recent sighting.
Stevenson says while it isn’t
common, there is a resident black
bear population in the north end of
the Bruce Peninsula and
occasionally one or two have been
known to stray from the pack and go
south. She says that it is most likely
they are looking for food, but
another possibility is that the mother
may have kicked the young bears out
and they are looking to establish
their own territory.
During this time, as Stevenson
says, the most likely reason a bear
would make its way into the area is
food. She suggests taking
precautions that would keep food
from being accessible to a bear.
Keep trash in containers bears can’t
get into, ensure barbecue grease
traps are kept empty and clean and
farmers should keep their land clean
of dead animals.
Bird seed or fruit that has fallen
from a fruit tree on the property
could also catch a bear’s sense of
smell.
However, while these contributing
factors may keep a bear interested
while in the area, Stevenson says a
physical encounter with a bear is
highly unlikely.
“Bears don’t like humans, so any
type of disturbance tends to send
them back into the bush,” she said.
“People don’t really have to take any
precautions when they’re out of the
house. It is very unlikely that they’ll
encounter a bear.”
If a bear is encountered, most
often it will avoid confrontation.
“Most bears, if they see you, are
going to try and avoid you. So if you
just stand there, generally the bear
will just leave when it notices you,”
Stevenson said. “If it doesn’t, you
can slowly back up and move away
from the animal. If the bear
approaches you, however, you can
start yelling at it, waving your arms
and just trying to make yourself as
intimidating as possible.”
People are cautioned that if they
are attempting to intimidate a bear,
they should ensure the bear has an
escape route and not to corner the
bear.
Campers should keep food away
from their tent or vehicle and if
fishing, fishes should be cleaned,
then disposed of away from the
campsite.
Right now the MNR is working
You can’t have one without the
other and that feeling held true for
the nominators and the committee in
making the selection for this year’s
Brussels and area Citizen of the
Year.
It was a difficult task facing the
committee this year as they were
presented with a lengthy list of
worthy contenders. As one member
noted, “It was very gratifying to see
the names of so many deserving
people put forward and a pleasure to
have such a tough job in selecting
one.”
After lengthy deliberation, the
committee selected Nora
Stephenson and her twin sister Fran
Bremner as the choice for 2008.
Any community event in the
village wouldn’t be the same if the
“Shaw Twins” weren’t there. They
have been big supporters of local
sporting events, church functions
and Brussels gatherings. They and
their friends participate in parades
for every occasion.
Stephenson and Bremner were
members of the championship
women’s baseball team decades ago,
and worked to bring them home for
the village’s 2007 Homecoming
parade.
Individually, but usually together,
they have been involved in church
work, the Brussels Agricultural
Society, the curling club, the
horticultural society and
volunteering at Huronlea.
Stephenson gets festive for every
occasion, whether Robbie Burns
Day or in St. Patrick’s green. And
few on the street don’t recognize the
twins’smiling faces. As a nominator
said, “No matter where you see
them, and it can be many places in
town, there is always a friendly
hello.”
The award is sponsored by The
Citizen.
When the committee considered
their choice for this year’s Blyth and
area Citizen of the Year, it just made
sense to select “one of the all round
good guys.”
After giving careful consideration
to the list of nominees the committee
selected Joe Hallahan as the
recipient of the 2008 honour,
sponsored annually by The Citizen.
Nominators provided several
reasons they felt Hallahan was
deserving of recognition. “He shows
true friendship and compassion for
the elderly and sick in the
community with regular visits and
little acts of kindness.”
Young people, too have benefitted.
“His toboggan trails have given
children many hours of safe and
exciting winter fun. He grooms these
trails with considerable pride for the
soul purpose of offering children
enjoyment and memories.” He even
supplies the equipment if necessary.
In addition to countless hours of
volunteering, with the Thresher
Reunion, Hallahan also went “above
and beyond the call of duty” as an
employee of the county and North
Huron, to make sure roads and
public works operations were safe
for others.
Hallahan also keeps his eye on the
political goings-on for his
community, being a regular fixture in
the gallery for most North Huron
council meetings.
Inspired by a meeting, federal
Liberal candidate for Huron-Bruce
Greg McClinchey is going to hold a
dinner.
On Friday, McClinchey presented
his idea to a meeting of the Huron
County Accessibility Advisory
Committee. His proposal is to hold a
barriers dinner.
“Guests will be assigned a
disability. They will be required to
eat their meal and participate in the
social aspects of dining out while
experiencing what it’s like to be
blind, have reduced mobility or
being hearing impaired.”
McClinchey said besides using the
event to raise funds for the
committee the purpose would be to
raise awareness.
“It’s just an effort to let people
know that there are people who need
some understanding,” McClinchey
said in an interview following the
meeting. “And if it can raise money
to help this group raise more
awareness and lobby governments
then it’s a good thing.”
McClinchey said he got the idea
after speaking with committee
member Lorie Falconer of Blyth. He
also explained that there was a
personal interest as well.
“My mother spent the last months
of her life in a wheelchair. And it got
difficult. Simply everyday activities
were suddenly challenges.”
The committee endorsed a
recommendation to partner with
McClinchey on the event. That
recommendation will be presented at
the Huron County committee of the
whole meeting, then will be
presented at the county council
meeting, July 2 for approval.
While McClinchey has a date and
location in mind for the event, he is
waiting to hear the results from this
before announcing them.
Bears come calling in Huron
CitizenTh
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$1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, June 19, 2008
Volume 24 No. 25SPORTS- Pg. 8Local teams celebratebig victories REVIEW - Pg. 19‘Music Man’hits rightnote at StratfordSUMMER BEGINS - Pg. 3Blyth’s Farmers’Market backin businessPublications 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:
Accessibility on
candidate’s mind
By Bonnie Gropp
The Citizen
Brussels twins tops
‘Good guy’ Blyth’s #1
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
Continued on page 6