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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1993-11-17, Page 1Madill plans week to promote healthy relationships See page 19 Community Mort- faf'Workj. tr. izen 1 Vol. 9 N o. 46 Wednesday, November 17, 1993 600 GST included Out of control A harvested field of cornstalks was being burnt off when a northwest gust of wind came up and blew the fire into the neighbour's field, says Mrs. Van Beers. John Van Beers of RR 1 Blyth called in the Blyth and District Fire Department at 1 p.m. on Nov. 12, to assist in putting out the fire because the neighbour had recently planted small trees along the fence line.Three trucks attended the fire and were able to put out the blaze very quickly. Mrs. Van Beers says she is glad to have a fire department that responded so quickly to the call. Health care providers prepare for battle Farm Montana woman discusses organic farming see pa Brussels Crusaders split weekend action See page 14 Music Festival Singers prepare to present Handel's 'Messiah' See page 23 Catalogue promotes grassroots business By Janice Becker The Ontario Home Health Care Providers Association (OHHCPA) is set to initiate a legal battle with the Ontario government over its policy which will drive commercial agencies out of home care, says OHHCPA associate president David Gooch. The policy which was announced in June, restructures the long-term care system, limiting the amount of home care purchased from com- mercial agencies to 10 percent or Clinton Public School will be the site of a presentation on Children and Violence, sponsored by the Federation of Women Teachers Association of Ontario (FWTAO), on Nov. 22 at 7 p.m. Susan Wyatt, of FWTAO says the seminar is being presented to parents to make them aware of the playground violence which their children may face each day. "Parent don't know it is happen- ing," she says. "They should stand and listen at the playground fence. It is not just fighting but verbal vio- lence as well." In accordance with the Huron County Board of Education's policy of zero tolerance to violence, which was implemented recently, FWTAO feels this seminar will be a good way to bring the community and school together, Ms Wyatt says. "The parents have to be involved." less. Presently, almost 50 percent of publicly funded home care is now provided by commercial agen- cies. Mr. Gooch says, "We feel we have no alternative. The govern- ment is pursuing a policy which we believe will jeopardize the quality and accessibility of home care ser- vice in Ontario." "Commercial and non-commer- cial agencies are paid the same rate and the Minister of Health says there is no difference in quality,"he The presentation will include a guest speaker, Jean Hewitt, super- intendent of the London Board of Education as well as three skits on schoolyard violence performed by the drama departments of Goderich District Collegiate Institute and South Huron District Secondary School. "It is hoped that the parents who attend will go home and talk to their kids, find out what is going on and help them deal with the prob- lems," says Ms Wyatt. She says she hopes there will be 125 in attendance with representa- tion from the newly forming par- ents' associations in the county. Ms Wyatt says, "We have to real- ize that violence does occur in Huron County, not just in the big cities. By getting the groups to work together, we hope to see bet- ter behavior in our schools and playgrounds." says. The OHHCPA says there is con- cern for the future of the 20,000 people who work in commercial home care. More than half could lose their jobs, says Mr. Gooch. MPP Paul Klopp says" the intent of the initiative was to enable more sick and frail elderly and physically challenged adults to remain in their homes by providing care there instead of being placed in an insti- tution." "This redirection will increase the money for community based services to provide service in the home," he says. There was consultation with clients of the service, says Mr. Klopp and they stated a preference for not-for-profit agencies. The NDP government then set the "limit at 10 percent, allowing for services to be purchased from Car hits cow Wingham OPP report a fairly quiet weekend in the area with only one minor accident on Sunday evening. At 7:30 p.m., Nov. 14 a 1984 Buick driven by Gary Sadler of RR3, Brussels was travelling north on County Road 19 in Grey Town- ship-. A spokesperson from the OPP said that a number of cattle had escaped the fenced in pasture and were on the road. The driver was unable to avoid hitting one of the cows, police said. Mr. Sadler sustained no injuries. For nearly a century it's been part of Christmas dreaming — looking through the mail-order catalogue and seeing all the tempting things you'd like to give for Christmas. for-profit agencies when they were not available from the not-for-profit sector," he says. At present, Huron County con- tracts out 19 percent of home care services to for-profit agencies, Mr. Klopp says. "The change-over will be phased in over a number of years and 10 percent is not expect- ed to be reached in Huron County until 1995 or 1996." "A single not-for-profit multi-ser- vice-agency (MSA) has been pro- posed to deliver the services. This will help maintain continuity of service to the client so there is as few changes as possible in who actually is providing care in the home," says Mr. Klopp. He says, "It is my expectation Continued on page 6 Usually that's meant country people sending off their money to urban stores but in 1993 things have changed. The new Christmas From The Country Catalogue being mailed this week to more than 20,000 homes across Ontario will have city people dreaming about the nice things in the country. The simple 24-page catalogue is the product of a hard-working group of local artisans and cottage industry owners who have been meeting since the spring to pull the project together. It contains every- thing from maple syrup products ad home-made jams and jellies to locally made clothing, the Barmy Bags of Brussels and hand-made furniture and screen doors. The idea for the catalogue grew out of a Blyth Idea Group meeting when Rhea Hamilton-Seeger of Auburn noted it would be nice if local cottage industries could reach a larger market through mail order and David Peacock, marketing director of the Blyth Festival, real- ized he could provide that market with the 20,000-name mailing list of past ticket buyers at the Festival. The result is a unique form of co- operation that allows local cottage industries to show off their prod- ucts at a low cost to the Festival's clients. The Festival, in return, saves on mailing costs by sharing with the other participants in the catalogue. North Huron residents played a big part in the long planning pro- cess to get the catalogue off the ground. Dave and Judie Glen of Glen Farms Herbs and Preserves Inc. at Ethel have been involved in the process since the beginning and have offered their toll-free tele- phone number for use by the cata- logue. Dorothy Cummings of Barmy Tech is the group's treasurer and recruited many of those in the catalogue, including her own moth- er, Carol Boneschansker who pro- vides Dutch chocolates as a sweet addition to the catalogue. Weaver Janet Baillie, a Wingham resident who works at Bainton's Old Mill has been involved since the beginning and recruited her daughter to do some of the artwork for the catalogue. Rhea Hamilton- Seeger, through her company "Pos- sibilities", looked after the design and typesetting of the catalogue. David Peacock serves as the group's founding chairman. Continued on page 6 Workshop to promote school bd's zero tolerance to violence policy Citizen sponsors contest Christmas is for kids'and with that in mind The Citizen is sponsoring essay contest-see obrating the upcoming, Festive season for young people I and those who remember being young. Children between the ages of 11 and 14 are asked to submit a short story of no more than 300 words entitled "The Spirit of Christmas'. The entries will be judged and the winning entries will be printed in the Dec. 22 'Season's Greetings" issue of The Citizen. Prizes will be awarded for first, $25; second., $15 and third, $10. We are also encouraging our adult writers in the second contest. In 500 words or less tell us about "A Christmas to Remember". First prize winner will receive a four coupon voucher pack for Blyth Festival, valued at $50, while second and third wilt split a voucher pack. Winning entries will be printed in the "Season's Greetings" issue as Deadline for entries is Friday, Dec. 10. Submit them by mail or in person to the Blyth or Brussels office. Include your name, address and telephone number.