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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1986-07-23, Page 1Local boy top basketball star When coach Terry Johnston talks about Ron Vecruyssen’s potential for basketball, he says Ron “hasn’t even scratched the surface.’’ For someone who hasn’t scratched the surface, Ron, a Seaforth District High School student, has already come a long way. He was recently chosen to get achanceatmakingthe top 12 of the Ontario Juvenile Basketball team in December. Ron, along with university stu­ dents and present members of the Ontario Juvenile team, could be one of 12 picked to travel to the 1987 Canada Games. The RR 2, Blyth resident is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Rene Vecruyssen and he says he’s very happy, “excited actually,’’ that he was chosen. Looking back, Ron says he started playing in Grade 9 when Coach Terry Johnston asked him to play for the sch )ol’s midget team. Now, the six-foot-ten-inch cen­ tre, will enter Grade 13 in September, and is hoping for an athletic scholarship following high school. He says Mr. Johnston is talkingtocontactsinthe United States about a scholarship. Ron was a member of the All Ontario Senior Boys Basketball championship team this past win­ ter and started tryouts for the provincial team by attending a regional tryout camp in London, where he made a list of 40 juvenile age players who were then invited to a second level camp in Kingston. The selection process for the Ontario team is part of the Ontario Basketball Top 40 program. Along with playing in the Canada Games, the program participants who make the top 12 have the opportunity to represent Ontario in an international juvenile tournament and become identified as potential national team mem­ bers. When asked how his parents feel about Ron’s recent success, Ron laughs, after his father jokes with him and says, “I guess they’re pretty happy.’’ Former Belgrave resident killed A tragic accident early July 14 took the life of a former Belgrave youth. Steven William Taylor, 16, son of Bob and Peggy Taylor of Ripley, formerly of Belgrave, was killed when the car he was driving went off the road and crashed into a bridge abutment about 7:05 that morning. Steven Taylor had attended East Wawanosh Public School in Bel­ grave before moving to Ripley where he attended Ripley Elemen­ tary School and Kincardine District High School. Surviving besides his parents are his grandparents, Jack and Mary Taylor of Belgrave, one brother, Kevin, and two sisters, Debbie and Angela. His great grandmother, Mrs. Ellen Arm­ strong of Pinecrest Manor Luck­ now, also survives. The funeral service was held on Thursday, July 17, 1986 from the MacKenzie and McCreath Funeral Home, Ripley. Rev. John G. Roberts of Belgrave and Rev. G. M acPherson of Ripley were in charge. Burial was in Brandon Cemetery, Belgrave. Serving as pallbearers were coahceswhohad been involved with Steven in ball and hockey: Paul McKee, Wilfred Haines, Lloyd Michie, Larry Irwin, Ray Johnston and Ron Irwin. Flowerbearers were his cousins Craig and Lisa Brisbin, Leanne and Sara Dusky, Sharon and Laurie Keller and his sister Angela Taylor. Country Arts, the new show at the Blyth Festival’s Art Gallery opened last night [Tuesday]. The exhibit features paintings, quilts and woodworking. Helping arrange the quilting display on Monday were: [left to right] Bridgitte Wolf, Jop Knechtel and Susan Rankin, whose quilts are featured. Airplane scheme rumoured in area Despite the fact the Ontario Provincial Police detachment in Wingham reports no local investi­ gation is underway, rumours continue to circulate that the get-rich-quick pyramid scheme is active in both the Blyth and Brussels areas. While Sgt. John McKee ofthe Wingham detachment of the O.P.P says he has heard rumours of the scheme being active in the area, no names have been turned up at this point and so police have no investigation underway. Last Tuesday night (July 15) a joint investigation by Provincial Police from Listowel, Sebringville and the anti-gambling squad in Toronto along with Waterloo Re­ gional and Milverton town police led to 10 more people being charged with taking part in the scam. To date, 125 people across southern Ontario have been charg­ ed. Locally, one Brussels resident told The Citizen that he had heard people talking about the scheme and had been approached to take part in it but had refused. A Blyth business person said he had heard a considerable number of people under30in the Blyth area were involved. The airplane scheme is no chain letter that calls for a small investment. Tobecome a “passen­ ger’’ on the airplane requires an investment of $2,200. The lure is that those who work their way up to become “pilots” will realize $17,600 for their investment. Lured by this dream, a local source said, people are borrowing money from people already in the scheme in the belief that they will make their $17,600 and then be able to pay back the $2,200. But police say thatfew people will ever see the pot of gold at the end of this pyramid-scheme rain­ bow. And not only do investors stand a good chance of losing their investment, they can go to jail. The Criminal Code of Canada, Section 189 (1) (e), indicates that even agreeing to become a passenger whether or not the money is paid out, is a criminal offence, punish­ able by a jail term of two years. Here’s how the scheme is supposed to work. Consider an airplane that re­ quires 15 people to enable it to fly; one pilot, two copilots, four crew members and eight passengers. For convenience of calculations, draw this configuration on a paper with the pilot at top centre and ending with a row of eight passengers at the bottom: Pilot 0 copilots 00 crew 0000 passengers 00000000 Now if each day the pilot leaves the airplance and each copilot becomes a pilot, the crew members on his side of your diagram become out and sell two seats each, we now have two airplanes with a total of 16 new passengers. The money saving puzzle ques­ tion is, assuming each airplane keeps flying with a full comple­ ment and each makes one flight per day, how many new passengers will be required on day 28? In other words, after four weeks of this scheme operating in Southwestern Ontario, what do you think your chances are of getting your money back if you gamble $2,200. to become a passenger? Answer to Puzzle: If you have figured correctly, you will now be aware that after two weeks, 262,144 new passengers are required; after three weeks, 33,554,432 new passengers are required and after 28 days, 4,294,967,296 new players are copilots and the four related passengers, who are now crew, go needed to make the scheme work. As you can see there is a high probability that many of these flights are doomed due to a shortage of passengers. If repeat­ ing players could keep the scheme going, then on day 28, Country Fair offers fun in Blyth Saturday Stalls of fresh produce, home- baked goods, books, plants, good used clothing and more will spill across the lawns of Blyth Memorial Hall on Saturday as part of the annual Country Fair of the Blyth Festival. The event which has both a bazaar and bizarre atmosphere, has been a successful fundraiser for the Festival for several years. Opening at 10 a.m. and running to 5 p.m., the fair will have, besides the stalls, a dunking tank where fairgoerswill haveachancetodunk artistic director Katherine Kaszas and other members of the com­ pany. Members of the “young company” will operate a kissing booth. Col borne celebrates 150th anniversary When the co-ordinators of the Colborne Township Sesquicen- tennial parade said that they promised a fun-filled and enter­ taining affair that would reflect the peopleandculture ofthe township, they weren’t kidding. It was a parade that offered a fitting tribute to the 150th birthday of Colborne Township, with over 100 floats which included both horse-drawn and gas powered vehicles, clowns, families, groups such as the Shriners club and their miniaturized versions of cars and motorcylces along with other service clubs. The Mitchell Concert Band, Kincardine Scottish Pipe Band, Goderich Laketown Band, Sea­ forth Girls Marching Band and the Dashwood-Seaforth Band all parti­ cipated in the parade providing musical entertainment. The parade, which lasted over an hour, was enjoyed by all as many wide-eyed onlookers showed their enjoymentwith smiles, laughs and many other signs of approval. One thing is for sure, not only was the parade entertaining, it was aparadethe people of Colborne Township will never forget. $9,448,928,051,200. would change hands! The OPP are attempting to help people realize that this, and most other easy money schemes, simply provide large profits to the original organizers at the expense of later participants. Variations of this scheme have developed in some areas, which are designed to attract young people and are played for as little as $100 each. The same logic applies, regardless of the amount gambled. For every person who realizes the promised 800 per cent profit, eight people must lose 100 per cent of investment. There will be a “cakewalk” starting at 1 1: JO where home bakerscan showofftheircreations. The cakes will be auctioned off to the highest bidder at 1 p.m. Clowns, fortune tellers and street artists will also add to the atmosphere. At 10:30 and 2 p.m. Marian Doucette, well-known Huroncoun- ty puppeteer, will perform puppet shows. There will be other contests like a paper airplane contest, a watermelon seed spitting contest and frog jumping. Donations for the stalls can be made at the Festival offices between 9 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. anyday before Saturday. All pro­ ceeds from the event go toward the Festival's capital projects.