HomeMy WebLinkAboutHomecoming '87, 1987-07-01, Page 8PAGE A-8. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 1, 1987.
_Homecoming '87_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Lack of doctor spurred community action
Residents of the Brussels area
today take good medical and dental
care for granted. If something’s
wrong they need only make an
appointment and go the short
distance downtown to the Medical
Dental Centre and receive the
medical or dental care needed.
Without a lot of work two decades
ago, however, there might be no
doctors or dentists in Brussels
today.
The Medical-Dental Centre to
day houses the offices of Dr. W. B.
Spink, dentist and Dr. Alexander
J. Bozyk who has a full-time
medical practice and Drs. Brian
Hanlon and J. K. McGregor who
operate a part-time clinic. There is
also an office of the Huron County
Health Unit.
In 1966 there was no doctor or
dentist in Brussels. The serious
ness of the situation hit home to J.
H. Stretton when he spent time in
St. Joseph’sHosptial in London. “I
was in pretty bad shape” he’s
quoted in a 1967 article in the
London Free Press. ”1 knew I
either had to get medical service in
Brussels or move out.”
Brussels had followed the trend
of many smaller centres at the
time. At one time there were four or
five doctors in the village but one
had recently moved away and the
last one had died. In the old days
doctors had offices as part of their
homes but the old ways were dead.
When Mr. Stretton began talking
to doctors about how to get a
resident physician in the village it
became clear a clinic would have to
be built.
It was a time of preparation for
Canada’s Centennial in 1967 and
the first thought was of making a
medical-dental centre a centennial
project. The Sept. 1,1966 Brussels
Post reports that Mr. Stretton as
Centennial committee chairman
and co-chairman Archie Grewar
heldawell-attendedmeeting at
which the idea was unanimously
accepted. There were representa
tives from the Lions Club, St.
Ambrose Roman Catholic Church,
Brussels United Church, Melville
Presbyterian Church, St. John’s
Anglican Church, Rebekah Lodge,
100F, Legion, Gentleman’s Club,
Teen Town, LOL, Recreation
Committee, Ladies division of the
Fair Board, Majestic W.I., Busi
nessmen, the Curling Club and the
Fire Department.
There was just one problem:
Centennial officials in charge of
funding said the project didn’t
qualify for Centennial funding,
‘‘they said it was the best project
they’d seen,” Mr. Stretton recall
ed recently, ‘‘butthey couldn’t
give it any money.”
Mr. Stretton wasn’t to be
denied. He dropped his involve
ment in Centennial plans so he
could concentrate on the medical-
dentalcentreplans. A newcom-
mittee, concerned completely with
building the centre was formed.
Mr. Stretton was the general
chairman; J.M. McDonald the
canvass chairman, Mrs. Ray Bron
son the secretary and Roy Turvey
the treasurer.
All the neighbouring townships
were approached and support
came from not only Brussels but
Morris, Grey, Turnberry, Howick,
McKillop and Hullett townships as
well. A fundraising letter sent out
as the campaign neared its climax
in October, 1967 said that 780
people, more than 80 per cent of all
people approached, had made
contributions toward the project.
Nearly $21,000 had been donated
or pledged by that time.
Looking back, Mr. Stretton says,
the fundraising campaign went so
well that ‘ ‘maybe it kind of went to
our heads a little. Instead of
putting up a $25,000 building we
went bigger, about $40,000.” The
result was a shortfall between the
amountof moneyraised and the
amount needed to pay off the
building. A number of local people
backed a loan at the bank until the
money could be found to pay off the
building.
The building itself presented
other problems. For one thing, the
idea was relatively new and there
were no other clinics to use as
models. (Later, Brussels would
serve as a model to Communities
like Watford). The doctors from St.
Joseph’s Hospital, who had looked
after Mr. Stretton when he was in
hospital, helped with advice about
how the medical part of the
building should be designed. A
representative of a dental supply
firm helped with the design of the
dental side. Jack McDonald helped
with the overall plans for the
building.
There was the problem of the
site. Finally a long-vacant build
ing, part of the woolen mill of a
century ago, was purchased and
demolished and construction be-
ganonthebuilding. The Centre
opened in late 1967.
The building itself wasn’t much
good without a doctor, however. As
soon as the planning for the centre
began Mr. Stretton began looking
for a doctor. Marguerite Stretton
remembers her husband working
night after night until three or four
in the morning writing letters that
he then took to Isabel Adams who
worked in a local law office who
typed them up.
An advertisement was placed in
the Canadian Medical Journal that
Continued on page A-9
Before the Brussels Medical-Dental Centre was built in 1967 there was worry whether Brussels would
ever have had proper medical care again. Today Brussels has some of the best facilities around.
Best
Wishes
to the Village
' of BRUSSELS
J on your 775tA
lt, b,rthda y
't S my pleasure to
| serve the area .
Cardiff
BRUSSELS
"\Ne are proud to be your neighbour"
Workmen begin demolishing the building that originally formed part
of the Brussels Woolen Mill to make way for the new Medical-Dental
Centre.
Back row [left to right]: Graeme MacDonald, Brad Knight, Lyle Pettapiece, Fred Uhler. Front:
Leona Armstrong, Helen Cullen.
"1/14? salute you"
Township Of Grey
REEVE: Leona Armstrong
DEPUTY REEVE: Lyle Pettapiece
COUNCILLORS: Fred Uhler, Helen Cullen, Graeme MacDonald
CLERK-TREASURER: Brad Knight