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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 2009-10-07, Page 10Page 10 - Goderich Sigiial5ur, WeOnestlay, October 7, 2009 Health units and school boards ask parents to track illness Health units and school boards in Huron and Perth Counties are asking parents to help track local illness. The Huron County Health Unit, Perth District Health Unit, Avon Mai- tland and Huron Perth Catholic Dis- trict School Boards have created a new School Health Monitoring Program. In the past, schools had to report ab- senteeism due to illness when 10 per cent or more of the student body was ill. The new program, starting Octo- ber 5, will require all Huron and Perth County schools to report illness each week, regardless of the number of stu- dents who are ill. "This will help us to see any trends or patterns among those who are getting sick, especially during the H 1 N 1 and seasonal flu season," said Dr. Nancy Cameron, Medical Officer of Health/ Chief Executive Officer of the Huron County Health Unit. "Having this de- tailed information will help make sure we have the right response to any out- break so we can help prevent further spread of illness." "This program is designed to help us keep a close eye on illness in Perth and Huron counties," said Dr. Miriam Klas- sen, Acting Medical Officer of Health for Perth County. ,K,.. �..., .M.....�,,, .q. a..x ... If you have an elect city guzzling fridge that's fifteen years old or more, you can get rid of it the easy way. ohne an a, pointment with us. We'll come into r home, take it away for free* and recycle it in an Ovnmentally friendly manner. You'll save between $150 per year in electricity Book online today at everykilowattcounts.ca r... ,�. 1 or call 1.877-797-9473 Parents will be asked to provide a de- scription of their child's illness when they call the school to report that their child will be absent. The school will ask the parent to identify whether the child is experiencing: •A respiratory or breathing -related illness (i.e. coughing, sneezing, trouble breathing, sore throat), •A gastrointestinal or stomach -relat- ed illness (i.e. vomiting, diarrhea), or •Any other type of illness (e.g. injury, medical appointment). Privacy will be protected because the names of students will not be given when the schools report the informa- tion to the health units. Photo by Denny Scott Author visit As part of the Celebration of First Nations Festival, author Chad Solomon shows an assembled audience at the Goderich Public Library how to draw some of the characters from his series of graphic nov- els; " Rabbit and Bear Paws. The series is derived from First Nations myths. Goderich auto lot business booming in face of recession finny signal -star staff Goderich's auto market is showing signs of revitalization thanks to an economy on the mend and incentives being offered by the auto makers. Goderich's auto lots have reported in- creased sales over the past few months, and some claim to be doing far better than they were before the economic crunch hit Canadians. "Things are booming right now," said Martin McGee, Vice President of McGee Motors. "The car industry is just right to- day; things are on the move and it's hap- pening." Scott Fletcher, assistant general manger of Goderich Hyundai, said they've seen an increase of approximately 35 per cent over last year in new car sales alone, thanks their new incentives. "Right out of the gate, we got our in- centive package in January," Fletcher explains. "For the first time in my experi- ence, we had sizable cash discounts and zero per cent financing combined. Until this year, people have had to choose one or the other. It kind of set the pace for a lot of our good press." Colin Andrews, general manager of Strickland's Toyota, explained their sales are down over last year's, but in recent months there has been an resurgence of people buying vehicles. "[People are buying cars now because] there is a new confidence in the economy," Andrews said. "People are feeling better about what's going on, and there's some great deals on our products right now." Andrews also said used car sales have been Strong at Stricklands throughout the economic hardships. With fuel costs being low and the econ- omy on the mend, all dealers said "green" models aren't being considered as often as last year at this time, and sport utility ve- hicles are making a comeback. "This year the [Hyundai] Santa Fe has been our single top seller," Fletcher said. "It's a cross-over utility vehicle with out- standing value, top of it's class for safety, and the style has always been a big win- ner. Add in the incentives and it's a really great deal right now." . For McGee's, the GMC Terrain and the Chevrolet Equinox have been big Fliers. "We've sold more of those models in the last three months than in the year before," McGee said. McGee added they have a good range of vehicles, and all of them have good mile- age in their regular configurations, so hy- brids haven't been a big seller. Toyota's Rav 4 and the Corolla have been selling well according to Andrews, and he attributes that to local buying in- terests. "The Corolla is selling well and it's made in Cabridge, and the Rav 4, which is built in Woodstock, is also selling pretty well," he said. "The hybrid products seem to come and go with fuel costs in this part of the world, and fuel is down right now." Goderich Hyundai and McGee Mo- tors are preparing for higher gas -prices though, with alternative fuel models com- ing in soon. Hyundai's first hybrid models will be available later this year, boasting compact power systems, new technology batteries that hold approximately 20 to 30 per cent more than nickel -cadmium models, and are built with light -weight materials. Chevrolet's Volt, a full electric model, will be out in the next two years.