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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1986-11-19, Page 1Bly th trucker wins bravery award for rescue mention of the award or of the act which precipitated it last July was ever made until last weekend. Clarence Baillie of Blyth, a trucker with J. & H. Campbell Transport Ltd., will be recognized as one of Canada’s bravest truck­ ers, with the presentation of the Firestone Canada Inc. National Truck Hero Award at Toronto’s Royal York Hotel. Mr. Baillie will share the honour with another A Blyth trucker will receive a national award for bravery at a gala reception in Toronto on Thursday, vet remains so modest that no Serving Brussels, Blyth, Auburn, Belgrave, Ethel, Londesbotough, Walton and surrounding townships. VOL. 2 NO. 47 WEDNESDAY, N0VEMBER19,1986 40 CENTS Brussels era ends An era has come to an end on the main street of Brussels, with the official takeover Monday of Steph­ enson’s Grocery by Ron and Trish Clarkson, well-known in the village as the proprietors of the Brussels Variety store. The business has been re-named Brussels Village Market, with the sign which graced the Stephenson store for 21 years officially retired, replaced by the new one. However, patronsofthebusi- hess will be happy that Bill Stephenson has not retired - yet. According toMr. Clarkson, Mr. Stephenson will continue on as a strong presence at the grocery store for “a few weeks, anyway”. Mr. Clarkson said the takeover had been ‘‘pretty confusing”, and he was glad of Mr. Stephenson’s hand at the helm until he learned the ropes of the new business. The Clarksons have lived in Brussels for the past eight years, the last four and a half as owners of Brussels Variety. Both partners are well known in town, having taken part extensively in commun­ ity activities for the past six years. Mr. Clarkson is a member of the Brussels Legion and Lions Club, and has been actively involved in coaching minor sports, including hockey, ringette and swimming, as well as being an active curler and past president of the Curling Club. Mrs. Clarkson is treasurer of the Brussels Cubs and Beavers, and teaches Sunday School at Melville Presbyterian Church. The couple has three sons. The Clarksons are not planning any major changes at the new store in the near future, although Mr. Clarkson said there may be some in the long term. ‘‘We’ll just have to wait a while and see what we can do to make the business even more helpful to our customers,” he said. ‘‘But we are certainly going tocontinue with the excellent service people have come to expect from the Stephensons.” Todd wins West Wawanosh election Kathryn Todd of RR 2, Lucknow emerged the clear winner in Monday’s election for councillor in West Wawanosh Township, tally­ ing 177 votes over her competitor’s 127 when the results were announ­ ced shortly after 9 p.m. Returning Officer Joan Arm­ strong said Mrs. Todd was present for the final count, although the only other contender, Joseph Hickey of RR 3, Auburn, remained With visions of sugar plums dancing in her head, little Leanne Vincent, 2, points out to her friend, Shelley Dobie, 9, just where she would start if she won the gingerbread house which was the first prize in the raffle at the Auburn Booster Club’s annual Christmas Craft Fair on Saturday. Proceeds from the Fair will be divided between the Londesboro Lions Club’s “Back the Biter” fund and Huron County Family and Children’s Services Christmas Bureau. Both children are from Auburn. at home. When contacted by The Citizen, Mrs. Todd said ‘‘I’m just glad I won.” Now that she is back on council, Mrs. Todd says she would like to see the township’s secondary plan completed, as she served on council in the plan’s initial stages before resigning to seek the reeve’s seat in the 1985 municipal election. She is also extremely interested in working toward the improve­ ment of park space in West Wawanosh, pointing out that the township is the only one in the area with no recreation facilities, and feels that this should be a high priority with council. She also wants to see ‘‘the ongoing pro­ blems at the (West Wawanosh) dump ironed out.” The mother of three, Mrs. Todd is an underwriter with the West Wawanosh Mutual Insurance Co. in Dungannon, as well as working on the family farm with her husband, Wayne, whois employed as a grader operator by the township. The council position was left vacant earlier this fall with the resignation of Jim Aitchison as reeve, and the subsequent ap­ pointment of Councillor Cecil Cranston to the position. trucker, Brian Shepley of RR 1, Essex, driving for L-K Metal Products of Windsor, marking the first time in its 31-year history that the annual award has been given to two truckers simultaneously. Speaking from his office in Hamilton, Bob Murray, Fire­ stone’s manager of corporate affairs, said that it is very unusual for two truckers to have sharedjn a dramatic rescue. He said that the rescue took place last July 9 on Hwy. 401 near Toronto. Alice Norman of Missi­ ssauga apparently pulled out to pass both Mr. Baillie and Mr. Shepley, travelling in tandem, when she lost control and hit a tree. Her car burst into flames. Quick action on the part of the two drivers averted a disaster, as they had the fire extinguished, the car door pried open, and were comforting Miss Norman by the time police and an ambulance were on the scene. A fireman with the Blyth Volunteer Fire Department, Mr. Baillie said at the time ‘ ‘ She would have been gone if we hadn’t been able to get to her. It all happened so fast, I didn’t have time to think about it.” Firestone Canada Inc. seeks nominations for the hero award from across the nation each year, with the winner being selected after careful examination by an independent panel of judges. The annual winner is presented with a cheque for $1,000 (in this case, split between Mr. Baillie and Mr. Shepley), a fine watch, and a handsome plaque in recognition of the deed. In additon, the heroes’ names will be engraved on a large perpetual trophy on display at Firestone’s head office. Firestone officials will welcome the Blyth hero to Toronto and will ‘‘wine and dine them royally” over two days, according to Mr. Mur­ ray. The highlight of the event will be the presentation luncheon at noon Thursday, with John Crosbie, Minister of Transport, as guest speaker. "Biter" fund tops $12,000 With 10 days still to go to reach its goal, the Londesboro Lions ‘‘Back the Biter” fund has passed the $12,000 mark, with more coming in every day. says fund- raising chairman Dave Overboe. As well, donations to the Novelty Auction to be held November 29 are climbing, with more than 40 items already tallied. The most unique item to come in this week is from local artist Larry Lucio, who has donated a limited edition print of one of his paintings. A hefty cash donation also came in from Scrimgeour’s Knechtel Food Market in Blyth, which last week advertised that it would donate 50 cents of the price of every pound of its own homemade country sausage on sale last week. Manager, Don Scrimgeour brought in a cheque for $263, which was matched by a similar cheque from Knechtel Foods for a total of $526. ‘‘Back the Biter” day has been organized in a one-day effort to raise $30,000 towards the purchase of a fully-equipped van for Lion Ron Nesbitt, who was injured in a swimming accident last summer. It is the most ambitious event of its kind ever attempted in the area. Radford’s Auto, Farm and In­ dustrial Parts in Blyth is accepting donations for the fund, or chairman Dave Overboe may be reached in Londesboro at 523-4416, any even- ingafter6, foranyone who wants to become involved.