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The Citizen, 2005-04-07, Page 12PAGE 12. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 2005. Writer visits with Blyth’s oldest resident Dr. Jackson Dr. Ken Jackson a retired Blyth veterinarian will soon be celebrating his 95th birthday and attributes his longevity to keeping active. (Photo submitted) By Eugen Bannerman Special to The Citizen In early March of this year, Sharon Jackson drove her father. Ken Jackson, through the rural countryside between Blyth and Goderich. Driving along familiar country lanes, Ken Jackson was able to tell his daughter who had lived on the farms, who had owned this or that house, and why he had called on that place as the local veterinarian. The familiar landscape triggered familiar names. Dr. Ken Jackson will soon be 95! He served as Blyth’s resident veterinarian from 1940 to 1964, covering the territory “from Walton to the water.” Jackson is Blyth’s oldest resident. 1 spoke with him recently in his home. His distinctive face is gaunt with age, and he frequently gestures with his hands when he has difficulty hearing. He possesses a quiet and dignified patience. He was pleased to reminisce about his years as “the local vet.” Ken Jackson was bom on July 7, 1910, in McKillop Twp„ the only child of George and Margaret Jackson. After a sojourn on the family farm in Saskatchewan, the Jackson family returned to Walton. Ken attended Grades i - 8 in Walton, and high school in Brussels. Ken tells the story of the day his parents brought home a piano, hoping their son would learn music. But Ken “never took to music.” He had more scientific interests. The Graduation Year Book predicted: “Ken Jackson’s life ambition is to be a veterinarian. He’s the only one who has fainted in school.” (So did both of Ken’s sons when they went to school!) Ken’s father built the stately red brick house in Walton on the south side of Walton Road. It was the pride of the family, with its oval stained glass windows and high ceilings. (In later years, Dr. Lavem and Joan Clark rented the premises before they moved to Blyth.) Sadly, the house is now vacant. Ken graduated from the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph in 1936. As was customary at the time, he received his “Doctor of Veterinary Medicine” degree from the University of Toronto’s College of Education. After practising for several years in Cayuga (near Burlington), Ken and his wife Ethel rented a farm in Hullett Twp. along the Walton Road, midway between Blyth and Walton. Here he was able to carry out both of his chosen professions: veterinary medicine and farming. In 1940, Jackson took over the veterinary business in Blyth from Dr. Purdue. One interesting story about “Doc Purdue” was that he had a bear. Apparently, he would take the bear to the fairgrounds where he would wrestle with the animal for the entertainment of others. In 1945, Jackson moved to Blyth and bought the house and small farm he still owns at the east enJ of King Street. The farm included a pond (“Jackson’s Pond” was a favourite skating site for neighbourhood children), and a bam which doubled as a stable and veterinary clinic. The old house was replaced by a modem bungalow in 1995. Jackson’s first caesarean section on a cow was done in the bam. His wife, Ethel, assisted him. The operation was successful, the heifer survived, and Jackson got to keep the cow in heu of payment. That was the beginning of the Jersey cattle business for the Jackson family. The milk would be hauled up the street to the Blyth Dairy. The Holstein business began in much the same way. Buyers went from farm to farm to buy cattle. Jackson would have to check the animals before they could be shipped across the border to the United States. The cows were often pregnant, but if they calved before they were shipped, Jackson got to keep the calves. “That’s how I got into Holsteins.” Jackson bought his first car shortly after graduation. Once he moved his practice to Blyth, he purchased a 1941 Plymouth Coupe, “with a wee bench for the wee kids.” Neighbourhood children often rode in the space behind the front seat. He also took some of them along with him on calls to local farms. Sometimes Jackson would arrive home after work with orphaned animals in the car, including lambs, pigs, and calves. Their mothers had died or couldn’t feed their offspring, so they were given to the vet to take home. The family remembers that some of these newly-born animals were raised behind the cook stove in the kitchen. Ken’s wife, Ethel, died in 1950 of cancer. With the help of live-in caregivers, Ken learned to cook, bake, and raise the family of four children: Wayne, Shirley, Graham and Sharon. The family was entertained, they now jokingly say, “by trips to Bisset’s Creamery in Goderich.” Sundays were reserved for making fudge “for his dear ones.” Sharon recalls only one holiday in their growing up years - a trip to New Liskeard (north of North Bay), in 1953. Ken Jackson developed great respect for the Blyth telephone operators. They would book his calls when he was not at home. More often than not, the operators knew the farmers who were calling Jackson, and they could keep track of his whereabouts during the day. “They were as good as the 911.” Ken Jackson’s number was 32. Nearly all of Jackson’s veterinary practice was with large animals, mainly cows, pigs and horses. But he also worked on smaller animals like sheep and goats, cats and dogs. Over the years he spayed thousands of dogs (at $2 an animal), removed porcupine quills from their noses, and checked for other problems. He even de­ scented a skunk-once! And once, in lieu of medicine, he gave whiskey to some calves “to warm them up.” Jackson participated in a government-sponsored program to vaccinate all cows in the township against brucellosis, at $1 a head. Brucellosis is a relatively rare infectious disease caused by bacteria. When cows are infected, their milk becomes contaminated with the bacteria, and the disease can spread to humans who experience flu-like symptoms. It is now very uncommon in Canada. Like many vets working independently in rural areas, Jackson was on call every day, every hour, every month. To the family it seemed most of the calves were bom at night. In winter, Ken would trudge along the snow-bound roads on foot if the snow plows had not yet cleared the roads. The bookkeeping for the business was done from the home. Books were stored in a home-made drop-leaf pine desk made by the father of a college veterinary friend. The work of filing and filling in forms seemed endless to the family. The desk remains a treasured possession. The territory covered by Jackson extended from Walton to Lake Huron. The medical drop off points - where farmers could collect the medicines for their cattle - were located at Auburn, Carlow and Dungannon. Jackson sold his veterinary business to Dr. Rudy Leibold in 1964. The new vet soon needed more help, and hired two associates. “The three of them to replace one man!” One of the associates Leibold hired in 1976 was Dr. Lavem Cl ark.After a few years, Clark bought the business from Dr. Leibold. It had been operating out of a small shop on Queen Street near the post office. Clark built a new and much larger clinic on Queen Street. Shortly after the clinic opened on the new premises, Dr. Phil Garriock came on board as a partner. In 2003, Dr. Kathleen Day joined the Blyth Veterinary Services team to provide medical services for the smaller animals. For 20 years after retirement, from 1981 to 2001, Ken Jackson helped his son Graham maintain the Blyth Union Cemetery, cutting the grass and preparing the burial sites. Father and son came to know where everyone in Blyth was buried. When Ken and Ethel first moved to Blyth in 1945, they attended Blyth United Church. “The church by the fire hall - that’s my church.” Jackson told me. He wasn’t a regular attendee - he was often too busy with work on Sundays; but he felt his family should attend. I asked Dr. Jackson to what he attributes his longevity. “I was always on the move, always active, if not at home, on the road.” His family added that he never smoked or drank alcohol, and kept himself fit, skating and skiing into his 80s. Longevity is also in his genes. We salute Dr. Jackson’s longevity, and pay tribute to his years of service looking after the domestic animals in this comer of Huron County. LHEALTH ON THE HILL J SEAFORTH COMMUNITY HOSPITAL SITE: Member of the Huron Perth Healthcare Alliance LAC SPRING UPDATE The Huron Perth Healthcare Alliance (HPHA) was founded on the belief that we should do all withir our control to maintain and enhanct the delivery of patient care services ir ........................ the communities served by the PERTH Alliance. Local Advisory Committee* HEAL1 HCAKE (LAC’s) are the local voice to help ALLIANCE ensure input to the HPHA board or. community priorities, culture and unique issues. Members of the Local Advisory Committee of the Seaforth Community Hospital are Arend Streutker, (Chair); Sheila Morton (Vice Chair), Mike Hak, Sheila Richards, Gord Rimmer, Alf Ross, Bob Broadfoot, Bob Norris, Tony Vandenhengel, Bonnie Bedard and Dr. Dan Rooyakkers. Our mandate is to provide input to the HPHA Alliance Board on issues of importance to the community. These include advice and consultation regarding the Alliance’s strategic plan, program changes, community health and wellness, recruitment and retention of professional staff, continued membership in the Alliance, and real estate decisions. Our group also serves as a training ground for Alliance Board members. & * i i i j i aJ Walton Hall welcomes a Jffttle, Hit You're all invited to the Walton Hall For a good night of dancing or just holding the wall! The music you'll hear will be a neighbourly mix Just a gathering for fun 'cuz the hall needs a fix So dust off your dance shoes and jump in your car April 16th isn't very far. 8:30 pm - 1T.30 pm ~ Lunch provided Proceeds to the Walton Hall renovations If you would like to get an earlier start to the evening the Walton United Church is having a spaghetti supper at 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. Co-ordinated by Murray & Sherry McCall SXSISI2SIZESZ39 There are many great things happening at the Seaforth Community Hospital site these days! ❖ Resumption of outpatient physiotherapy for those individuals with acute conditions and who are not covered by health benefits and/or third party insurance. ❖ Resumption of occupational therapy services effective mid-April. ❖ Ministry of Health and Long Term Care funding to purchase a new ultrasound machine, patient lifts, sterile processing equipment and safety equipment (e.g. needleless I Vs). Funding was also received to support the provincial Nursing Strategy; and assist with the Ministry’s agenda to become more efficient and transform health care services. ❖ Redesign of the inpatient medication room to improve working conditions, safety and ease of medication administration. Generous community contributions have allowed the Foundation to purchase 2 medication carts. ❖ A special thanks to the Auxiliary for their donation of a tilt-recline wheelchair and a TV for the Patient Lounge. ❖ Your gifts to the Foundation resulted in the purchase of a wider-width wheelchair and new and upgraded defibrillators. Foundation members are also a key local voice. ❖ Seaforth help was crucial during the water advisory in Stratford. There was rapid response to move staff and equipment between sites to ensure minimal impact on patient care. A number of additional surgical procedures were rescheduled to the Seaforth site and we provided significant support in cleaning and sterilizing equipment. ❖ Recent re-roofing of the Hospital ❖ Submission for funding for Family Health Teams ❖ Recruitment of Dr. Helen Frye to a full time practice in the Seaforth Medical Clinic ❖ Relocation of the Huron Perth Crisis Intervention Program to a lower level office to maintain a Huron based office LAC meetings are open to the public; please contact Grace Dolmage at 527-3001 for meeting dates and times. Membership vacancies are advertised annually with applications welcomed from interested