HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1997-02-26, Page 5TNI MINION Tip j1, February ae 1•67-4
Guest Column by Frank Sills
Saluting in London, England durin WWII Will r l
Before Christmas we asked
readers to submit memories
on a variety of topics for the
Celebrate Seaforth 's History
committee and to publish in
the Duron Expositor.
We have received a series
a tic!: :.;. wa me».�.-
ries from Frank Sills, one of
Seaforth's most involved citi-
zens over the years. This
week we present one of
Frank's pieces.
BY FRANK SILLS
During World War II the
city of London in England
was perhaps the one with the
most popularity with Allied
Troops. The streets were full
of various national troops
both officers and men. This
entailed a lot of saluting and
g 1 trans anted
g i ransp anted workers
spend salari
various ruses were used to
getting around it. One of the
commonest was to turn and
show a great interest in the
contents of a store window.
I was on leave and went to
the Canadian Beaver Club
near Trafalnar Square.. •o— .-y..K�.. wilcrc i
ran into some Canadians who
had been on a Radio Course
with me at the University of
Toronto and finished as
Radar Mechanics after a
course in England.
We were all glad to see each
other and set out to see a pic-
ture show in the city. There
were six of us and we all
came from different units to
where we performed similar
duties.
We noticed an officer com-
ing towards us so we auto -
Huron MPP writes about Bill 104:
matically tum to look into
a window. A voice said
"Airmen turn around." It was
the Canadian officer who
announced that he was in
charge of special police for
the city of London and IfA_ r
he had been getting com-
plaints that the likes of us
were not saluting. He imme-
diately asked the first airman
"Where are you from?"
"I'm with a Czech
squadron."
"You should know enough
to salute."
"Who are you with?"
"I'm with a Canadian
Squadron."
"You should know enough
to salute."
"Who are you with?"
"I'm with a Free French
squadron."
"You should know enough
to salute."
"Who are you with?"
"I'm with an RAF
Squadron."
"Yat: s t,uiu know enough
to salute."
"Who are you with?"
"I'm with a Polish
squadron."
"You should know enough
to salute."
Then he turned to me and
said, "Who are you with?"
"I'm from Ireland."
"Ooh, well there might be
some excuse for you."
"Yes Sir, we hardly ever see
an officer."
This wasn't exactly true but
it served the purpose.
What are teachers marching about?
Dear Editor:
The Government has lis-
tened to the concerns of rural
Ontario and has acted by
- introducing Bill 104. As
many parents are aware, there
have been inequities in the
funding formula since it was
designed, and these inequities
have been very harsh when it
comes to funding education
in the County of Huron.
Presently, the Huron Perth
Separate School Board
spends approximately $4900
per student. This is made up
of approximately $7.6 mil-
lion raised through property
tax and a $18.5 million grant
from the province. The
Huron Board of Education
spends $5500 per student,
approximately; $26.5 million
through property tax levy and
a $27.5 million grant from
the province and therefore
from income tax collected
from the taxpayers of
Ontario. The situation is
quite different in the major
cities. in Toronto, in the pub-
lic system approximately
$9000 is spent for each stu-
dent's education every year.
All of these funds are raised
by property tax. levy. An
inequity in per pupil funding
has led many people to be
concerned about a two tiered
education system.
As subsequent governments
have reduced grant funding
to boards of education, Huron
boards have been substantial-
ly affected as a result of the
grants they receive. The
Toronto board on the other
hand, has received no reduc-
tion in its funding because it
receives no grants from the
provincial governments.
Therefore, it is important to
note that Toronto schools
'have faced no reduction in
funding whatsoever. Many
have talked about the equi-
tableness of this situation. 41
believe that this system no
longer works, and is not equi-
table to the people of Huron,
and therefore it must be
changed. We have done this
in Bill 104. Subsequent gov-
ernments have considered
change but to say the least, it
is controversial, especially in
Toronto.
As a result of Bill 104,
funding for students will be
on a per pupil basis. This will
ensure that all students in the
province have the same' dol-
lars spent on their education
regardless of where they live.
Depending on the results of
the funding formula discus-
sions, there is a possibility'
that more dollars will be
spent on thc students of
Huron.
The same bill amalgamates
school boards across the
province. I believe that this
will reduce administrative
costs across the province and
put dollars into thc class-
room. A Huron Perth board
presently represents the sepa-
rate schools in Huron and it
will not he changed. The
public school board will
become a merged Huron
Perth Board. Will this pro-
duce savings? . Presently we
have two directors, two busi-
ness managers, etc. and I
believe we cannot help but
reduce administrative costs.
One of the last issues out-
lined in Bill 104 is the estab-
lishment of the Education
Improvement Commission.
This commission was set up
to ensure the transition
occurs smoothly and stu-
dents' concerns are met and
that the taxpayer's interests
are protected. A trustee in the
Huron Board has stated that
he welcomes the commission
so the interests of the public
are protected and there is no
question as to the fairness of
the amalgamation.
As th s teachers unions gear
up this week by picketing
MPP's offices and taking the
debate into the classroom, I
ask parents, teachers and stu-
dents to consider carefully
the effect of this bill on thc
education of Huron students.
The government responded to
the requests and petitions of
the people in Huron by
putting forward this bill.
Since -the bill meets the needs
of the Huron students, it sur-
prises me that the teachers
union has mobilized teachers
to march in Exeter on Friday.
What is it that they are
marching about? Is it a pre-
amble to the bargaining
table? I certainly hope not!
Sincerely,
Helen Johns, MPP
Huron
ESSIAH
TME
PASSOVEI
BETHEL BIBLE
CHURCH
Seaforth District
High School
1111 SUNDAY, MARCH 9
10:45 AM
'es in town?
workers spend their salaries
in our communities".
We urge you to contact
Helen Johns, MPP Huron at
1-800-668-9320 or the
Minister of Education and
Training, John Snobelen at
416-325-2600 to express
your concerns about your
children's education.
CUPE, Local 1428 mem-
bers at Seaforth Public
School
Marilyn Beuerman, Janice
Carter, Carol McGregor,
'oanne Durnin, Ruth Ribey.
Joanne Flanagan, Ann Kelly
CONTINUED from page 4
punch clock has struck to sig-
nify our day's end,yet the
is government feels the
veteraHarrns of educational sup-
port are easily disposed of at
the expense of the students
themselves.
We are contributing mem-
bers of our communities and
we support our local busi-
nesses. Will "transplanted"
outsourced support workers
care for the children in our
schools like we do? Will
"transplanted" outsourced
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