HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1966-12-29, Page 1taAsokri,o1Is1e...,9 ... .. . 1,144$144,4,014.00 . IpoOkiAgpil$0 0.1MAI.0 0 00.111.0111111011.011,11 4.0 intiosAilipoomsoksjoniolifixowowdogq
Family left homeless by
pre-Christmas blaze bbancoet
Canada's background theme
for Golden Circle concert
The home of Mr. and Mrs.
Jim Wells of Scott Street was
destroyed by fire on Thursday
morning, despite the efforts of
the Wingham fire department.
The blaze is believed to have
started in the kitchen of the
home. Mr. and Mrs. Wellshad
left for work before the fire and
their two young children were
at the home of a babysitter.
The fire was discovered shortly
before eight o'clock. No one
was in the house at the time.
The fire raged through the
home and despite quick work
by the firemen, only the tele-
vision set, purchased a month
earlier, was saved from the
flames. All other family pos-
sessions were destroyed or bad-
ly damaged.
Mr. and Mrs. Wells and
family are staying with her par-
ents, Mr. and Mrs. Jack Stacey,
until accommodation can be
found.
Some clothing for the child-
ren, in addition to other assist-
ance, has been provided by the
Salvation Army, and friends of
the family,
David Crothers, deputy fire
chief, told The Advance-
Times there was no doubt that
the origin was either in the re-
frigerator motor or in the wir-
ing. During the four hours
spent by firemen at the scene
it was necessary to cut into the
roof and walls to be sure all
fire was extinguished.
As the family had left the
house at seven o'clock that
morning and the alarm was
turned in a short time later by
neighbour Claire Hopper, fire-
men believed the blaze was
well underway on their arrival.
At that time smoke was billow-
ing from all doors and windows,
making firefighting procedures
very difficult.
ed to talk in more general
terms.
Most of us assume, said Mr.
Hellyer, that children see the
world as we do. Most often
this is not the case, he said,
stating that the harmful effects
of television are not as great as
adults assume. He did feel that
there would be little harm, and
perhaps considerable merit in
seeking changes in television
broadcasting and in the con-
tent material presented to
children.
"It seems," he said, "that
it is only when brought into in-
teraction with a number of oth-
er unfavourable factors, that
television may contribute to
behaviour patterns that give
rise to difficulties both for the
individual and for society."
New management
-at bowling alley
Ian MacLaurin will take ov-
er the operation of the local
bowling alley next week. Ian
will continue to work at CKNX.
The bowling alley was built
by Mr. and Mrs. Walter Brown
several years ago and had been
operated by them since that
time.
The families and friends of
the children of the Golden Cir-
cle School attended the Christ-
mas concert put on by the
youngsters on Thursday. Spe-
cial guests who attended were
the school board members and
their wives and the school
nurse, Mrs. Crawford Douglas;
graduates of the school and
their parents were also guests,
Mrs. T. English, Mrs. W. For-
syth and Mrs, Lapp, some of
the volunteer helpers from for-
mer years, assisted with the
social hour that followed the
program.
The theme of the program
was "The Centennial Year in
Canada", telling of the cus-
toms brought to Canada by peo-
ple from other countries. This
has been the theme of lessons
taught • this fall at the school by
the teachers, Mrs. Jack Reavie,
Mrs. Richard Kilpatrick, and
the supply teacher, Mrs. Hans
Schipper.
The first item on this part of
the program was about the In-
dians who first lived in Canada,
A little Indian drummer boy
entered, followed by an Indian
chief and his tribe, to do the
Indian buffalo dance around a
wigwam. Then children dress-
ed in the costumes of the dif-
ferent nationalities which came
to Canada as the years went by
-- one of the boys, as an Eng-
lishman with some of his sold-
iers, placed the English flagon
Canada and one of the girls en-
tered as the Queen.
A junior dressed in Irish cos-
tume presented the senior class
Seeking picture
of ball team
Some of the folks who are
gathering material in Howick
Township for the Centennial
Year are looking for a photo-
graph of a ball team from that
township which wona champ-
ionship in the 1890's. Anyone
who has such a picture is asked
to contact The Advance-Times.
who formed a band with drums,
spoons, and other instruments
to play a favorite Irish folk
song. Another little junior, in
costume, represented the Scot-
tish theme and four couples
danced to "Commn' through
the Rye". A little girl in the
costume of Holland, introduc-
ed the Dutch theme and all the
other children brought tulips,
which are a product of Holland,
to help beautify Canada.
A little boy and girl dressed
in Japanese costume with kim-
ona, parosol and fans provided
the action for a Japanese song
and then one of the boys dress-
ed as a Chinese appeared with
a bowl of rice and chopsticks
while the song "Chopsticks" was
played in the background.
The final number was " All
Canadian", the children enter-
ing with the new Canadian flag
and one girl with the banner
Several organizations helped
to make Christmas as happy as
possible for the 76 patients who
spent the holiday in Wingham
and District Hospital.
The Hi-C group of Wingham
United Church and the Baptist
Church choir were among the
carol singers before Christmas.
On Friday evening patients had
the opportunity of hearing the
St. Andrew's Hand Bell Choir,
the group of young men who
perform so well under the dir-
ection of Gordon Leggatt. And
on the same evening a choir of
about 50 members of the hospi-
tal staff sang carols in the halls.
Music on the P.A. system,
the decorated windows and gift
plants and flowers added to the
festive atmosphere and on
Christmas morning Mrs. I. Mor-
rey, administrator, made her
Christmas rounds for the 25th
time as she visited the patients
and distributed chocolate Santa
Clauses donated by Mr. and
Canada. All sang "The Maple
Leaf", "This Land is Your Land"
and "0 Canada".
Christmas and sacred songs
were sung by all as well as a
solo, "Deck the Halls with
Boughs of Holly".
The Golden Circle School
has also participated in the Na-
tional Centennial Physical Fit-
ness Program which was explain-•
ed by the teachers and movie
film and slides were shown of
the children as they participat-
ed in the contests. This pro-
gram will continue all next
year, tests being taken again in
the spring and in the fall. The
tests include, for the seniors a
300 yard run, a number of
speed sit-ups in 30 seconds,
vertical jump and a one and
one-half to 3 mile hike, ac-
cording to age. For the juniors,
Please Turn to Page Twelve
Mrs. Norman Cameron.
The Christmas trays were
decorated with favors made by
the Wingham Kinette Club and
the Hospital Auxiliary. Many
of the patients had guests for
Christmas dinner as it is a cus-
tom at the hospital to allow
each patient to have one guest.
This is a highlight for most
people confined to the institu-
tion for the traditional family
day. Elderly patients received
Christmas baskets from the Sal-
vation Army.
Mrs. Morrey served dinner
to the staff.
There were no deaths at the
hospital on Christmas and no
serious emergencies. The per-
sonnel spared no effort to make
the day a happy one and per-
haps the only disappointment,
especially to patients in the
chronic ward, was that Santa
did not make his personal ap-
pearance this year.
Television, like everything
else, has its good points and
bad, according to Dr. Sidney
Hellyer, associate professor of
Psychology at Waterloo Luth-
eran University. Mr. Hellyer,
speaking to the staff of the
Wingham and District High
School at their Christmas ban-
quet last week, said he thought
the harmful effects of televis-
ion programming are often ov-
er-emphasized by adults. He
contended though, that some
programs are definately harm-
ful to some children.
Mr. Hellyer obtained his
B.A. in Honours Mathematics
and Psychology, and his M. A.
in Psychology at the University
of 3ritish Columbia, furthering
his studies at the University of
Indiana , where he obtained
his Ph.D. in psychology. Prior
to joining the staff at Waterloo
Lutheran University, Mr. Hell-
yer taught high school and was
a teaching assistant at the •Uni:_,
varsity of British Columbia.
The speaker explained that
his interest in the effect of
television on children started
recently when a Kitchener
newspaper contacted him to ask
his opinion on the distrubing
influence of the Batman pro-
gram. As he hadn't seen the
program, Mr. Hellyer was forc-
Harmful effects of television
over-stressed says professor
ONE SECTION THIS ISSUE
Happy Christmas
Yule activities cheer patients
Christmas fairyland transforms Wingham home
Wingham, Ontario, Thursday, Dee, 29, 1966 Single Copy Not Over Fifteen Cents,
SOMETHING UNIQUE for Christmas for
Wingham's main street was the live Na-
tivity scene portrayed each night during
Christmas week outside St, Andrew's Pres-
byterian Church. Members of the Young
People's Society, dressed in costumes
which they made themselves, stood almost
motionless for an hour each evening. The
project involved every member of the
group and was the idea of Rev. G. L. Fish,
minister at St. Andrew's. Accompanying
the Nativity scene was a bell ringing chorus
which heralded the coming of Christmas
with traditional hymns and carols.—A-T.
DEPICTING THE FIGURES of Mary and
Joseph at the live Nativity scene at St.
Andrew's Presbyterian Church last week
were Virginia Murray and John Welwood.
The project was carried out by the St.
Andrew's Presbyterian Young People's
Society and involved about forty teenagers.
The backdrop for the scene, representing
the rough hewn logs of the stable in
Bethlehem, was erected for the Young
People by Angus Mowbray. Throughout
the week long display, the participants
kept as still as possible, causing many to
pause for a better look to determine if the
figures were actually alive.
—Advance-Times Photo.
Christmas is a wonderful
time of year for most young-
sters, with its festive family
gatherings and its heaps of gifts,
but for many children in Wing-
ham and this surrounding dist-
rict a touch of fairyland has
been added.
The home of Fred Porter on
Leopold Street south provides
one of the most magical sights
any child could dream about.
Blazing with color, the house
and frotit lawn are crowded with
every imaginable expression of
the Christmas spirit.
Over 800 colored bulbs have
been used to outline the home,
the driveway, the TV antenna,
the windows and the garage. In
addition to the hundreds of
bulbs outside, the interior is
just as bright. Nine strings of
lights decorate the Christmas
tree. Needless to say, Mr. Por-
ter has found it necessary to in-
stall a special electrical ser-
vice to accommodate the extra
load.
The hundreds of sight seers
who pause to view the colorful
scene are greeted by much
more than the visual fantasy.
Christmas music is heard from
an outdoor speaker, attached
to a record player which will
handle two and a half hours of
continuous record changes.
Then, too, there are the
bells. Rigged to motor-driven
frames are 6'7 sleigh bellsjing-
ling out their merry rythrri, as
well as six or seven sets of cut-
ter chimes,
At the south side of the lawn
is a beautiful nativity scene
Which Mr.• Porter secured in
Western Canada at a cost of
well over $100, and placed
about the property are dozens
of cut-outs and other visual
Christmas scenes. He has had
enthusiastic assistance from his
housekeeper, Mrs. Mary Cox,
who has done a great deal of
the work necessary to construct
and paint the scenes. The pic-
ture on the garage door is her
work.
This is the third Christmas
that Mr. Porter and Mts. Cox
have re-created their Christ-
mas fairyland and they say that
they will continue to add to the
collection of decorations and
lighting effects.
As one might imagine, stor-
age is a very real problem.
However, Mrs. Cox has boxes
for every piece and all are
numbered so that each article
goes back into its own contain-
er when the Yule season is over,•
Needless to say, they don't
have too much spare room in
the basement for the rest of the
year.
--Mr. and Mrs. Robert
Campbell and family of St.
Thomas spent the holiday week-
end with her parents, Mr. and
Mrs. Albert Rintoul.
--Rev, and Mrs. John Con-
gram, Mark and Robbie of
Hamilton spent the week-end
with their parents, Mrs. W.
McKinney and Mr. and Mrs.
W. D. Congram. Charles Con-
gram of London also spent the
week-end at his home.
--Mr. and Mrs. C. N.
Blackball of Toronto spent the
week-end with his sister, Mrs.
W. D. Congram and Mr. Con-
gram.
--Mr. and Mrs. W. C. Bain
and family of Stratford, Mr.
and Mrs. Ken Horton and fam-
ily of Clifford, Mr. and Mrs.
Jim Bath and family and Mr.
and Mrs. Fred Steward of Lon-
don spent Christmas Day with
Mr. and Mrs. William Bain Sr.
--Mr. and Mrs. Jack Laing,
Lennie Lou and Jimmie, Clark-
son, Mr. arid Mrs. Gordon Car-
son and family of Teeswater,
Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Coburn
and Drew spent Christmas Day
with Mr. and Mrs. Morris Swan-
son.
--Mr. and Mrs. Jim Bain and
family spent Monday in Ches-
ley with her mother, Mrs. Har-
old Krug.
—Mr. and Mrs. Ken Felker
and family of Morrisburg and
Mrs. Betty Dewbury and fam-
ily of Hamilton spent Christmas
with Mrs. V. L. Sanderson.
—Mrs. B. H. Miller of De-
troit spent Christmas week-end
with her sister, Mrs. R. G.
Gannett and Mr. Gannett,
--Mrs. Gordon Hastie visit-
Three trucks
tangle near
Brussels
A Christmas Eve collision in-
volving three trucks sent two
persons to Wingham and Dist-
rict Hospital with injuries. The
accident occurred about three-
quarters of a mile west of Brus-
sels on Huron County road 16,
about 7;30 p.m. on December
24.
The three trucks were driv-
en by John C. Rock of Kincar-
dine, Gordon Workman of Brus-
sels and Cliff Marks of R. R. 4
Brussels. Total damage amount-
ed to approximately $2,500.
Injured in the crash were
Gordon Workman, who suffer-
ed a dislocated ankle and a
fractured hand and Karen
Pletch of Brussels, a passenger
in the Rock vehicle, who re-
ceived facial lacerations.
The accident occurred in
heavy fog. Constable K. G.
Wilson of the Wingharn detach-
ment of the Ontario Provincial
Police investigated the acci-
dent. No charges were laid.
ed with her brother, Mr. and
Mrs. Norman Thompson and
family, in Mitchell over the
week-end and had dinner with
Mr. and Mrs. Wilfred Roy.
—Mr. and Mrs. Mac McKay
and family of Cambray are
spending a few days this week
with his brother, Mr. and Mrs,
Don McKay and family.
--Mr. and Mrs. George Gam-
mage and family spent the
Christmas week-end in Willow-
dale with his parents, Mr. and
Mrs. Clayton Gammage and
Tom.
—Mr. and Mrs. Jack Hotch-
kiss and family of Listowel,
Miss Ruth Hotchkiss of London
and Robert Shackleton of Brant-
ford spent the holiday week-
end with Mrs. G. Hotchkiss.
--Mr. and Mrs. Dolg Mur-
ray and Connie of Waterloo
spent the week-end with their
parents, Mr. and Mrs. J. P.
Alexander and Mr. and Mrs.
W. C. Murray.
—Mr. and Mrs. Don Cam-
eron, Sandra and Bruce spent
Christmas with their son, Mr.
and Mrs. Mack Cameron arid
family at Oshawa.
--Mr. and Mrs. Roger Ken-
nedy and family of Kitchener,
Mr. David Hedley of Waterloo,
and Mrs. Peggy Smith and fam-
ily spent Christmas Day with
Mr. and Mrs. Ab Nethery. Mr.
and Mrs. "Slim" Boucher, Bar-
ry and Duane of Chatham spent
Monday at the same home.
Holiday comings and goings