The Citizen, 2008-10-23, Page 1Ghosts, goblins and assorted other
spooky creatures will be hautning
the Greenway Trail this Saturday
night at the annual Witches’Walk in
Blyth.
Beginning at 7 p.m. just to the east
of London Road at the parking lot by
the water tower, visitors can
experience the thrills and chills set
out by volunteers. “As we prepare
they are starting to arrive, but people
can come at any time before 9:30
p.m,” said organizer Hope Button.
The event has become quite
popular over the years with busloads
arriving from out of town to take
part. For this reason, the committee
works hard to ensure there are
surprises in store. “We are constantly
building on what we had the
previous year,” said Button. “We
also move things around and make
some changes so it’s fresh and
unexpected.”
While last year’s beginning put the
fear into folks right at the start,
Button said the big scare comes later
this time, though what people will
see first is no less dramatic. “It’s
going to be quite eerie.”
Though the event is attended by
every age, Button cautions parents
need to know their child. “We’ve
never put an age limit on it, and
we’ve had children going through in
strollers. But it is Halloween, so for
some little ones it may be scary.”
At the end of the trail the Blyth
firefighters will be offering
refreshments.
Admission is by donation with
proceeds going to benefit the fire
department.
“It’s a lot of fun and always well
attended,” said Button. “It’s a good
time if you’re into the spirit of
Halloween.”
Since its formation in May, the
fundraising committee for the new
Brussels library couldn’t be happier
with the commitment from the
community to date.
“Our goal was $120,000. So far
we have raised $71,000,” said
committee member Paul Nichol.
“We are quite pleased with the way
it’s coming along. And that’s been
without a lot of work.”
Nichol said there have been
donations from the Optimists, the
Lions, the trust fund and individuals.
“We are going to be doing a
business canvass that will hopefully
bring some more in, and have been
approaching financial institutions as
well,” said Nichol.
Charlie Hoy, who is also a
member of the committee said
fundraising events to date have gone
well and another is in the works. The
first event was the viewing of Stars
of the Town, a film of Brussels from
the late 1940s. The second was
the book sale during Fun Fest
weekend.
“This was very successful,” said
Hoy. “It raised almost $1,200. And
other support came from Dorothy
Cummings of Barmy Tech, who
donated bags for people to carry
their books.”
With the designs approved for the
building, Nichol feels encouraged
that the next fundraiser will be even
better. “It helps for people to see a
visual of the new library. It gives
them a sense of what they’re
donating to.”
The third fundraiser is a
celebration of local authors to be
held Nov. 8 at the Brussels Legion.
“This will be a night of readings,”
said Hoy.
“We wanted to do something
about books,” added Nichol. “And
the notion was there are people out
there who have published, authors in
our midst. They are all local, but
there is also a focus on the theme of
growing up in Brussels.”
Scheduled authors include
Catherine McColl, whose Happy As
the Grass Was Green tells of her
childhood in the village.
Nelva Scott will be sharing her
story of what it was like to be a new
bride coming here from
Pennsylvania.
Clem Steffler’s Out Standing in
His Field relates to his life,
particularly as an educator. While
Steffler won’t be able to attend
Nichol is expecting that a family
member will fill in on the reader’s
chair.
Nichol too will be involved. As the
grandson of Jack Thynne, he will be
reading some of the many articles
his grandfather had published in The
Brussels Post under the name of The
Kansas Farmer.
“It should be a fun night,” said
Hoy, adding that it begins at 7:30
p.m. and is expected to wrap up at 9
p.m. There will be refreshments.
Another part of the evening will be
the sale of limited edition 11x14
matted framed prints of the
Carnegie Library, by Brussels native
Curtis Mutter. Cost is $20.
Tickets for the evening are $10.
They are available at Solace on
Turnberry, McCutcheon’s Motors,
Brussels Variety, Cinnamon Jim’s or
any committee person. Joining
Nichol and Hoy on the committee
are Cathrine Campbell, David
Blaney, Mary Ann Bernard, Leona
Armstrong, Ralph Watson and Joe
and Deb Seili.
Parachuting
Curtis Bergsma was one of the first of Hullett Central Public School’s students to take
advantage of its play day last Thursday. Students were all over the field rotating through
various games and taking advantage of the sunny weather of last week. (Shawn Loughlin photo)
Huron-Bruce elects
‘workhorse’ as MP
While Oct.
14’s federal
election
largely saw
familiar faces
around the
country return
to the table,
this was not a
possibility in
Huron-Bruce.
And just after
10:30 p.m. on
election night,
the riding
changed from
red to blue.
Conservative candidate Ben Lobb,
who came within 1,000 votes of
“unbeatable” Liberal incumbent
Paul Steckle last election defeated
his competition last week, taking
just under 45 per cent of the riding’s
votes. This time around, however,
the numbers were not quite as
close, with Lobb defeating his
closest competitor, Greg
McClinchey, Steckle’s successor in
the Liberal Party, by just under
6,000 votes.
“A workhorse” is how Lobb
described himself to his volunteers
minutes after being elected.
Lobb was up at the crack of dawn
on Oct. 15, working with the
members of his team to take down
election signs from the far stretches
of Huron-Bruce. This was after an
night that saw him elected at 10:30
p.m., speak to his volunteers at
11:30 p.m. and stay around thanking
his supporters well into the next
morning.
This is the work ethic that Lobb
says he is proud to bring to Huron-
Bruce and he isn’t about to slow it
down now.
“There was no basking in the
victory, it was right back to work
and humble pie pulling signs out of
the ground. I grew up in a family of
hard-workers and that’s what the
people can expect from me and my
staff. I really think the sky’s the
limit,” he said.
“We’ll be working around the
clock to deliver results on several
priorities within the first six months
with our manufacturing and
industrial base and with agriculture
and we’re working on federal efforts
for healthcare as well. We’ll be
working hard for all, but there are
definitely some specifics that we’re
working on as of right now.”
Lobb is no stranger to
competition, or politics for that
matter. His grandfather took office
as the mayor of Clinton, he had an
uncle on Clinton’s town council as
well as two other uncles who ran for
office at both the provincial and
federal levels.
This is a history Lobb cites as a
major influence on his decision to
enter the world of politics.
Lobb was born in Clinton. He
attended Clinton Public School, then
Central Huron Secondary School
before attending Lee University in
Tennessee on a baseball scholarship
where he earned a degree in business Authors read for library
CitizenTh
e
$1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, Oct. 23, 2008
Volume 24 No. 42SPECIAL- Pg. 13Fall car caresection begins AGRICULTURE - Pg. 22 Local pork selected forCasey’s restaurantsACHIEVEMENT- Pg. 7Local writer pens newbookPublications 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:
By Bonnie Gropp
The Citizen
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
BEN LOBB
Huron-Bruce MP
Witches walk
Greenway Trail
By Bonnie Gropp
The Citizen
Continued on page 6