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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2019-02-21, Page 1CitizenTh e $1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, February 21, 2019 Volume 35 No. 8 SCOUTS - Pg. 10 ‘The Citizen’ honours local Scouts and Guides GALLERY - Pg. 19 Blyth man now president of Blyth Festival Art Gallery AMBASSADOR - Pg. 6 Morrison comes away from convention rejuvenated Publications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0 INSIDE THIS WEEK: Blyth student’s essay named world’s best Initiative impresses MPPs Mikayla Ansley’s “Kindness Matters” has won the grand prize in the Lions Clubs International peace essay contest. This is the first time that a Blyth Lions Club-sponsored participant has triumphed on the world stage. The official announcement will be made at Lions Day with the United Nations in New York City on Saturday, March 9. There, Ansley will be honoured with a plaque and a prize of $5,000 U.S. Ansley and her family have been invited to make the trip courtesy of Lions Clubs International. Ansley and her family were informed of the win on Monday evening by Lions Club President Barney Stewart and several other members of the club. Stunned, Ansley cried when she heard news of her win. This comes after Ansley’s essay placed first in Lions Multiple District A, which comprises all of Ontario and Quebec. With that victory, Ansley’s essay was part of the international competition and it would be read in Milan, Italy this summer. She won $1,000 Canadian for her Multiple District A win, on top of the $100 she won at the District A9 competition late last year. The competition, which was spearheaded by Lions Clubs International several years ago, invites students between the ages of 11 and 13 with visual impairments to write an essay on their answer to peace. This branch of the competition was established as an answer to the organization’s peace poster competition but for students with visual impairments. The essay details Ansley’s battle with bilateral retinoblastoma, a rare form of ocular cancer that caused her to lose her left eye and most of the vision in her right. Ansley said many people were very kind to her family at a time when both of her parents, Mike and Katie, had to quit their jobs to take her to the hospital on a regular basis. “I’m so thankful to all the people that held our hands through it all, by donating toys, blankets and money so that this family could stay on our feet,” she wrote. She also details the steps she’s taken to pass kindness on in recent years, whether it’s a fundraiser at her school, writing letters to world leaders or simply exchanging a smile. Ansley wrote that the smallest acts of kindness on a daily basis can change the world. When speaking with long-time Lion John Stewart and Club President Barney Stewart, Ansley wondered aloud how she would spend her prize money. While her father Mike suggested saving it for college, Mikayla said she could see herself buying everything from an iPad to the iPhone X to a year’s supply of candy or an electric fence for the family’s dog. Mikayla’s journey in the competition began through her father, Mike, who is a member of the Blyth Lions Club. Long-time member John Stewart informed Mike of the competition, specifically aimed at children between the ages of 11 and 13 with visual impairments. From there, Mike and Katie mentioned it to Mikayla and she was immediately interested, although she says she has never considered herself much of a writer. Mikayla has won numerous awards for her public speaking achievements over the years, a forum she says she much prefers. With her limited vision, she said, the physical act of writing or typing on her iPad can be exhausting. However, she committed to writing about a topic she’s passionate about and asked her father to proofread for her before she submitted the essay late last year. Before Mikayla turned the essay over to her parents, she said she was confident she had done a good job, knowing it was a good opportunity to get the message of kindness across. When Mikayla found out that her essay had triumphed at the local level, she was really happy with her success, but she said she was truly over the moon when she found out about winning the competition at the Multiple District A level. The Blyth Lions Club hopes to host a come-and-go open house to celebrate Mikayla’s win sometime in the coming months. More news on that event and the Ansleys’ visit to New York City will be available in a future issue of The Citizen. Phil Beard of the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority thinks some great progress has been made on bringing the details of the Carbon Footprint Initiative (CFI) to the provincial government. Beard was part of a special meeting with members of the CFI and Huron-Bruce MPP and Minister of Education Lisa Thompson and Perth-Wellington MPP and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Randy Pettapiece. Beard says that the provincial government is currently undergoing consultation to help inform its climate action plan and both Thompson and Pettapiece seemed excited by what was going on with the CFI. The meeting was held earlier this month at the Pioneer Seed Plant in Wingham and included representation from across the initiative. Beard said that the meeting was meant to bring the MPPs up to speed on the initiative and the CFI’s work to reduce members’ carbon footprint and to sequester carbon. Martin Vogt, the CEO of EFS Plastics Ltd., was the first to speak, discussing recycling plastic and the competition his company faces. With subsidies in Alberta for the production of new plastic bags, A time for family Family Day weekend is always a busy one in Huron County. Thanks to service clubs and other volunteer groups, there is always plenty to do. In The Citizen’s coverage area, the Londesborough, Brussels and Blyth Lions Clubs were all serving up breakfast in their own communities, as were the Blyth Legion and the Legion Ladies Auxiliary. At the Brussels Legion there was karaoke and the Catch the Ace draw while the arenas were full of young hockey and broomball players. In Belgrave, several teams took their skills to the snow-covered volleyball courts on Sunday for North Huron’s annual Family Day event, which boasted events in Belgrave, Blyth and Wingham. (Quinn Talbot photo) By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Continued on page 3