HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1990-03-14, Page 3Last delivery
Sorting mail will soon beathing of the past for Harvey Garniss
of Blyth. After 32 years he’s giving up his rural mail carrier
route on Thursday.
THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 1989. PAGE 3.
Study says Festival a boon to Blyth
Harvey Gamiss delivers
mail for the last time
Harvey Garniss will make his
rounds on RR 1 and RR 2 for the
last time Thursday and then retire
after 32 years of delivering the
mail.
Mr. Garniss first began deliver
ing mail on RR 1, Blyth in 1957 or
1958 (he can’t remember for sure)
and a couple of years ago added the
RR 2 route as well.
With this week’s summer like
weather he leaves his job in a
totally different situation than
some of his most vidid recollections
of winter mail deliveries over the
years. He recalls one year when he
drove down a sideroad he thought
4-H club bakes bread
BY DEBBIE MACHAN
The second meeting of the
Londesboro I Breadventure Club
was held on February 26 in the
Londesboro Hall. The meeting was
opened with the 4H pledge, then
members read the roll call and had
the mintues read by the secretary.
They then went into the kitchen
and made some French Bread.
While they were doing this every
one mentioned what they made and
how it turned out. While the bread
was baking everyone read over the
meeting notes. After the bread was
done they all sampled it and closed
with the 4H Motto.
the snowplow had opened only to
find the plow had turned back. He
soon found himself surrounded by
snowbanks and had to abandon the
car. It was two days before anyone
could get back to it. He went to a
neighbours and they skied to
another neighbour’s farm and got a
ride the rest of the way to Blyth.
Winter conditions have changed
a lot, he says, not only with our
recent mild winters but also be
cause roads are built up higher
these days so visibility isn’t as
much of a problem.
Nearly all aspects of mail deli
very have changed over the last 32
years he says. Some of the original
families are still on the route,
however.
It’s people he will miss the most,
he says, but his retirement will
leave him more time for one of his
hobbies, horse racing. Now he
won’t even have to come home
from the track at night, he jokes.
Pat Brigham will take over the
two routes on a temporary basis.
Activities surrounding the Blyth
Festival pump nearly a half-million
dollars into the community each
summer, a study carried out by the
University of Waterloo points out.
The study, based on surveys
conducted by the University last
summer, found that the average
out-of-town visitor to the Festival
spends $11.96 on items other than
theatre tickets (mostly for food and
gifts). Based on 32,725 of the
Festival’s 47,000 visitors being
from out of town, the study
estimates visitors spend $391,391
on purchases other than their
theatre tickets.
The study also estimates the
Festival spends $90,000 directly in
Radfords
layoff
10 workers
Layoffs that have hit other Huron
County communities in the last
week hit Blyth on Friday when
George Radford Construction Limi
ted laid off its entire workforce of
10 men.
Doug Scrimgeour, president of
the company said that the layoffs
came because of the cancelling of
three major construction contracts
in the past few weeks, some of the
projects which were due to begin
immediately.
The problem grew out of the
recent increases in already-high
interest rates which made compan
ies have second thoughts about
carrying out projects they were
planning.
Mr. Scrimgeour said he hoped to
be able to recall his workforce once
other construction projects begin.
Earlier in the week layoffs had
been announced at General Coach
in Hensall and Stanley Door Sy
stems in Wingham and work-shar
ing has been instituted at the
Western Foundry in Wingham
where slow sales in the auto
industry are blamed for layoffs.
the community in the purchase of
goods or services.
The figures do not include the
benefit to the community of salar
ies paid to Festival employees.
Based on surveys, the study esti
mated that the Festival itself
creates the equivalent of 37 full-
time jobs (90 part-time and five
full-time) and that the business
generated in the village by related
activities creates the equivalent of
another 32 full-time jobs for a total
of the equivalent 69 full-time jobs.
The study say the average play
goer at Blyth tends to be older with
only nine per cent being under 30,
14 per cent being 30 - 39; 16.2 per
cent being 40-49; 27.7 per cent
being 50-59 and 32.9 per cent being
over 60. The vast majority, more
than 60 per cent, had an education
level from secondary school to
university degree and 60 per cent
of the playgoers earned $30,000 a
year or less. The largest percent
age, (26.2) were retired with home
makers (13.3), artistic profession
als (12.3) and clerical workers
(12.3) being next in line.
The study shows that the Festi
val attendance is still very heavily
made up of local people. The
survey showed 23 per cent of the
audience came from the Blyth area,
26 per cent from one to 50 km.
away; and 44 per cent from 51 to
100 km. away. Most come specifi
cally for the plays but stop to do
some shopping as well and the
overall atmosphere of the village
attracted particularly those who
have attended the Festival in the
past.
And the Festival audience is
loyal. The surveys showed that
while 11.5 per cent were attending
the Festival for the first year, 28.9
per cent had been attending for
four to five years, 28.8 per cent for
six to ten years and 26.9 per cent
for 11 to 15 years.
Blvth.
People
Thirteen tables were in play at
the weekly Monday night euchre
party at Blyth Memorial Hall
March 5.
High scores for the evening were
recorded by Marjorie McDougall
and Ted Mills. Mabel Riley and
Len Shobbrook had the low scores.
June Jacklin and Walter Pepper
had the most lone hands.
Those at the lucky table were
Mary Robertson, Mary Shobbrook,
Audrey Walsh and Don Buchanan.
At the lost heir card party at the
Hall on Wednesday, March 7 Gene
Snell and Arnold Cook had the high
scores. Anna Snell and Millar
Richmond had the low scores. Ella
Richmond won the special prize.
There were six tables of players for
the evening.
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