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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1992-06-10, Page 22One big happy family Mrs. Betty Battye of Blyth was the happy hostess of three Japanese visitors during their tour with their play Kanashibetsu . Left to right: Fran Cook (Mrs. Battye's daughter), Chie Moriyama, Mrs. Battye, Michiko Naito, Catherine Welsh (another daughter) and Yoshiro Hashizome. Woman hosts Japanese visitors Grand Open, June 17 BY CHRIS ROULSTON Numerous Blyth and area fami­ lies had the opportunity to serve as host families to the touring theatre troupe from Furano, Japan for five days this past week. Mrs. Betty Battye of Blyth counts herself as very fortunate for having been able to provide a home for three members of the Furano group: Yoshiro Hashizome who was involved with production; Chie (nicknamed Totoro) Moriyama who was involved in lighting; and Michiko Naito was an actress in the production. Mrs. Battye says she couldn't have had nicer house guests. The three of them never had any com­ plaints and they were very appre­ ciative of every small thing. She thoroughly enjoyed their visit and was very sad to see them leave on Sunday morning, as were all the other host families. The Blyth Festival first approached Mrs. Battye about receiving some of the Japanese visitors through her daughter Fran. Fran had been asked to house a vis­ itor and she informed them that her mother would probably be interest­ ed also. The Japanese arrived on Tuesday evening and were treated to a hefty North American meal of pizza by the Festival and a welcoming com­ mittee comprised of host families, town council members and other interested people. Mrs. Battye said Yoshiro, Totoro, and Michiko were quite exhausted by the time they finally got home to her house. At first, communicating was a lit­ tle rough and a lot of hand signals had to be used, but Mrs. Battye says they got along fine. Yoshiro spoke English the best and he helped out when the girls had any problems communicating. The Japanese were very impressed by the space here in Blyth and by the stars at night. In Tokyo you can't see the stars because the buildings are too tall and the light from the city blocks off the stars. Yoshiro, Totoro and Michiko also loved the colours of the fields, especially the fields of canola. They found the area very beautiful. Michiko says she wants to return to Blyth for her honeymoon and stay with Mrs. Battye. The Japanese troupe was taken to a bam dance Thursday night. It was quite a new experience for them and they thoroughly enjoyed it. Unfortunately Totoro couldn't attend because she had to work on lighting. Totoro was treated instead to canoeing and fishing with Mrs. Battye's family. Mrs. Battye says that Totoro and her grandson got along very well remarking how much better children seen to com­ municate. Her guests, she said, were very surprised at the reception they received in Blyth. Everywhere they went, people greeted them on the streets. They were over­ whelmed by the friendliness. County to express concern over changes Huron County Council will regis­ ter its concern over loss of cover­ age for rural issues caused by the closure of production facilities at CKNX TV and the sale of the sta­ tion to Baton Broadcasting. County councillors supported a resolution from Hullett Township, Thursday, expressing concerns over the CKNX changes. Blackburn communications first announced the closure of production facilities at CKNX television, then a few days later announced the sale of CKNX and CFPL to Baton Broad­ casting, the largest television sta­ tion in the country. Hullett Reeve Tom Cunningham worried that with a large urban station taking over, and with no production facili- Letter to the editor continued from page 21 with its diminished view of human' potential. Finally, why did I pick apart Christianity with such vehemence. The numerous problems confront­ ing planet Earth (social, ecological decay, political, economic, popula­ tion growth, etc.) stem in part or wholly from centuries of pro­ religious attitudes about Man's position in nature. It is “Christian” nations which are responsible for most of the ecological decay affecting our global village. In over-population, the Judeo- Christian was, and still is, raw demographic aggression, an attempt to subdue the earth by turning the human uterus into a baby machine with sexist attitudes Mrs. Battye says she doesn't know if there was anything that her guests didn't like, such as food, because they were much too polite to ever complain. They did men­ tion that we eat a lot more meat here than they do in Japan. They are used to the idea of North Amer­ ican food however because of the cosmopolitan nature of Tokyo. Mrs. Battye was upset to see her new found friends leave, however , she would like to visit Japan herself in about three years time, and she also hopes that they will come again to Blyth. at CKNX ties, CKNX may become just an urban station. The resolution pointed out CKNX had a mandate to provide agriculturally-oriented program­ ming for Huron, Bruce and Grey counties and that with the reduction in staff that would be difficult. CKNX should not merely be a relay station for CFPL but should retain its identity as the voice of this area of midwestem Ontario, the resolution said. It called for the county's concerns to be made known to Martha Blackbum of the Blackbum Group, owner of the two stations, and to the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommu­ nications Commission, which will have to approve the sale to Baton. and to dehumanizing gender roles inherent to Christianity. The success of this is indicated by the fact that Christianity is the largest religious group on earth. Child abuse is traceable to the retarding Christian teachings on human sexuality as well as a host of other societal ills. The list could go on and on. The last correction is that Abraham Lincoln was not inspired by the bible. He was a Humanist as was Albert Einstein, George Orwell, Thomas Edison, Thomas Jefferson, Albert Schweitzer, Carl Sagan, Mark Twain, Charles Darwin, Margret Atwood, Morgentaler, and many, many more. Doug Trollope With the Grand Theatre's stages dark until the fall, attention has shifted to “play” of a different sort. The Grand Theatre & Kellogg Canada Inc. Second Annual Women's Open is set for Wednesday, June 17, at Greenhills Country Club in Lambeth. A full day of great golf and hospitality is planned. The inaugural event in 1991 was hugely successful, raising over $22,000 for The Grand Theatre. Kellogg Canada Inc. has generously renewed its support of the tournament in the form of a substantial funding commitment, volunteers and other assistance for the day of the event. Last year's appearance of the Tony the Tiger hot air balloon from Battle Creek, Michigan was a special feature of I the tournament. At this year's] outing, the Canadian Tony balloon will be launched from Greenhills t during the day, weather permitting. The tournament is part of an all- 1 inclusive day from lunch to golf to dinner and a fabulous prize table - every golfer will win a gift from a great array of good and services donated by dozens of local businesses. A truly gifted golfer could be the lucky winner of a 1992 Mazda Miata. The trick? Merely sinking a hole-in-one! East Wawanosh's 125th Birthday 8 Prince and Princess % Contest * WAWANOSH When: Friday July 3rd Winners announced at Family Dance Where: Belgrave Auditorium Contest Rules: 1) Must be 12 to 17 yrs. of age as of July 3rd 2) Must be a resident of East Wawanosh Twp. 3) Deadline to register is Wed. June 24th Contest Requirements: 1) Speech (1 1/2 to 2 mins.) Topics to choose from: -Why I enjoy living In East Wawanosh Twp. or -My contributions to East Wawanosh Twp. 2) Interview (History of Twp. Current Events, etc.) For more information or to register please call 523-9469 - after 5:00 or 357-2862 - after 5:00 Maitland Manor Nursery & Landscaping MAKE SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL HAPPEN See us for all your trees, shrubs, evergreens,roses and perennials Call for help in planting mulching & pruning Regardless of golf acumen, each registrant will have an equal shot at the tournament's best prize, as each golfer will be entered in a draw for tickets for two to Europe donated by Canadian Airlines International. The Theatre's special events co­ ordinator, Alison Janzen, will be pleased to take reservations or handle enquiries about the golf tournament. The entry fee is $125 and a tax receipt of $75 will be issued to each golfer. CHRYSLER W All you have to do Is drive one.