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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2000-01-19, Page 4Your Community Newspaper Since 1860 Terri -Lynn Hart - Publisher Scott Hilgendorff • Editor Susan Hundertmark - Reporter Pat Armes - Office Manager Dim* McGrath • Subscriptions/Classifieds %Bowes Publishers Limited s.rw..n .J s.. u. i.. Co,p,..nw. - A (4.4. o. Ci.ps:; - E-mail us at seaforth@bowesnet.com SUBSCRIP 1ON RATES: LOCAL 32 50 a year, in advance, plus 2.28 G.S.T. SENIORS: - 30.00 a year, in advance, plus 2.10 G.S.T. . USA & Foreign: 28.44 a year in Advance, plus S78.00 postoge,G.S.T. exempt SUBSCRIP11ON RATES: Published weekly by Signal -Star Publishing at 100 Main 51., Seotorth. Publication mail registration No. 0696 held qt Seaforth, Ontario. Advertising.is occepted on condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising spoce occupied by theerroneoui item, together with a reosonoble allowance for signature, will not be charged, but the balance of'the advern'lement will be paid for at the applicable rote. In the event of a typographical error, advertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to sell and may be withdrawn at ony time. The Huron Expositor is not responsible for the loss or damoge of unsolicited monuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproduction purposes. Chonges of oddress, orders for subscriptions and undeliverable copies are to be sent to The Huron Expositor. • Wednesday. December 29, 1999 ldlhA.l .■d wsteess Offices - 100 M.I. slreetr.,$.af.rllt ttWe'Ue.e (519) 537.0340 Fax (519) 537.9555 Melling Address - RO. lex 69, 5..feriA, Oat.rl.;.NOK 1WO Member of the Canodian Community Newspoper Association, Ontario Community Newspapers Association J !1 Publication Mail Registration No. 07605 Editorial Rural communities need to be stronger The survival of rural communities continues to be threatened. • Small communities have been forced to restructure into larger ones causing an identity crisis for some of the smaller villages and rural corners that have been swallowed up by larger, political entities. School boards and the province are closing rural schools, taking away community -centres and institutions of small towns and villages. The government doesn't recognize towns like Seaforth as rural communities because of their proximity to a city. Now, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs is Streamlining its operations and removing virtually all the personal contact farmers have at local and regional offices. People could go and seek out advice on how best to handle their dairy herd, what soil improvement measures they could take or what steps they would need to expand their operations in an ever -tightening agricultural economy. The fabric of rural and small town life is being ripped away little by little. About the only thing that's going to be left to hold it together is the people. Egmondville will always be Egmondville and Harpurhey will always be Harpurhey as long as there are families to live there. Rural identities will always exist but they are losing their strength. s time rural communities got together with a ricultural leaders like the Federation of Agriculture and make a genuine push to have government, both federal and provincial, recognize the significance of rural communities. Too 'many decisions are made by politicians from cities who don't u nderstand the basics of rural infrastructures. They can't see how a small town withqut transit can be affected differently from a Targe city with buses and subways. It's time they had a lesson in Small Town 101 so decisions are made with a better understanding of the province or country. The communities like Seaforth might be recognized as rural and not urban simply because the town is a 45 -minute drive from a small city. Scott Hilgendorff HOW tO access US Letters to the Editor and other submission* can be triode to us by noon on Monday! 00' • sl torth0bowesn . A11 left and submissions apgt lFh , nod s tint.d by .n day.tl ' t .. .4 :{fI(it 44 .t�fb� wildf"r l F4 1 r.rt� '1117t 1�i+l�lrit D c*1 ck , , o A/ • Opinion Letters Walton situation risks dividing communities Dear Editor: I think it is appalling for someone as smart as the Mayor of Seaforth to actually publicly say that if the Avon Maitland District School Board closes Walton Public School not to sell it because the Seaforth District High School could use it for a place from which to pilot the agriculture program that the' High School intends to put into their High School. As a parent with children in Walton Public and Seaforth Public I just couldn't believe my ears when Dave Scott stood up at the public community meeting in Walton last night and said those words. If Dave Scott wants an enemy, he just made many. If the board actually gets to the point of closing schools and the board does close the public school in Walton, it must be first offered to another school board for the cost of nothing. Then that school board would have 90 days to make up it's mind if it wanted that school. I know that this parent would not stand idly by and see Seaforth District High School move into that building. .1 would personally make it impossible for that to ever happen in my lifetime. How would Seaforth Mayor Dave Scott like it if Walton Public School stayed open and the High School closed? I bet it would put a knot in his boxers. Just remember that nothing is written in stone and Walton Public School presently feeds into Seaforth Public School and then onto the Seaforth District High School. if we don't work together and come up with a better solution, then the board will- succeed in dividing and conquering us both. We will all lose if we are not careful. I am probably one of the most informed parents in our school at Walton or at Seaforth but I have not had any say or representation in what the Seaforth Public School is currently doing. We received home a small slip of paper about a meeting to inform us of . what we stood to lose other than our building for a meeting the Monday following the announcement on Nov. 23. If that is all the input the parents at Seaforth are going to get to say in this matter, I don't know why they want our kids to attend Seaforth Public School. Obviously, parental input is not an option the Seaforth community study group wishes to have. I personally feel that the only way we can change this board's mind is to lobby the federal government and ask them to consider changing the definition of rural and remote or to ask the federal government to increase the tax levy in our areas at the taxpayers' request. Increasing the tax levy would be the best way to do this so no schools would be closed. The way things stand right now the board has succeeded in dividing communities and pitting parent and community alike, against one another. Can anyone see this board closing the high school and not using the building for something else other than the recently renovated board office? This board has had its own agenda for quite some time. Realisstically, this would never happen. This board will choose the most cost efficient approach and the option that will eliminate the most empty pupil places and if you doubt that, then your head must be in the sand. Remember the - saying united we stand, but divided we will all fall! I hope every school in the Avon Maitland District School Board is taking notes. Get out there and do a community study on your own. Don't wait for this board to ask for one or you will be in the same situation that Walton, Seaforth and Seaforth High schools are in now. We were not allotted time to do a community impact study nor will the board allow us time to do that now, I know because I asked that very question last night and my answer was that St aforth High School was asked to start that with Brussels last March but was soon told all they were to look at was changes to the boundaries to help the High School. That is a far cry from any community impact study that i have ever seen. Don't wait until your school's name is on the list for accommodation review to start this process. Gather together as school council chairs with your family of schools and get that information now. If you sit and wait the board will close as many schools as it deems necessary to keep the money flowing and eliminating the 4,000 empty pupil spaces it has. • Please arm yourselves with as much information about school closures and accommodation review as possible. Get informed and be prepared. If anyone wants help in getting started, I can tell you what you will need. My number is not a listed one, but if you contact Walton Public School they would see that you get my number. I urge every school to be prepared and don't wait until you see your name on next year's list to get started. I am personally going to write to my local MPP who did not show up in person to ' the public meeting in Walton last night. I even had to call that office to find out if someone from that office would .be in attendance. However that office claims it isn't choosing one school over another but didn't even know what time or where the meetings are. I guess you can call that selective hearing! Bottom line Helen Johns, where were you? Your aid, Jodie Snell said that you were away with your family. Well good for • you. My family has seen very little of me in the last two months iiecause I have been too bury in meeting after meeting trying to prevent our school board from closing the two schools that my children attend. I bet if.it was a school that her children attended on that list, we would be looking at a different picture. Look out Mike Harris, you're next on my list to inform! It is because of Bill 160 that your government was passed that has put all of us in this boat that is sinking. Come on now Mike, - at least throw us some sort of life line or some of us will teach our children at home. Then where will our public school systems be then! Barbara Durrell (This letter is in response to information presented at a public meeting in Walton - last week) Support for schools from as far away as Australia To the Editor: I have just been reading with dismay the reports in your newspaper about the imminent closure of a number of Seaforth district schools, in particular Seaforth District High School of which I am an alumnus (early 60s). I note in particular that your Jan. 12 article has community leaders urging everyone ip the district to attend a public meeting to show support for retaining these schools. Although I cannot be there in person. I would like to indicate that you do have moral support from me, even from as far as. Victoria, Australia, where I now reside. SDHS has been an excellent school with many notable graduates who have spread their influence far and wide as well as in the local. community and I am greatly saddened to learn that it may disappear altogether. The community leaders are quite right in expressing their concern for the fate of Seaforth itself, as here in Australia we have already seen the effects on small country towns which have been the victims of economic rationalism and now are struggling to survive. When the schools, hospitals, and banks close, a country town dies - it is as simple as that. I intend to follow this issue with interest through the Internet and I hope that the meetings called will be a demonstration of great community spirit in the face of such indifferent bureaucracy. Strength .to your arm and may you win this battle. Yours Faithfully, Anne McKarney (nee Shortreed) Bendigo, Victoria Australia. Work on ice surface begins , January 12, 1900 During the past few weeks. W. Cudmore of Kippen has In the Years Agone shipped from the neighbouring stations over 40 cars of hay, all destined for the Old Country. He received a telegram froth the agriculture .department at Ottawa, asking him for a tender for a quantity of hay to he sent to South Africa and he wired an offer' to supply 200 tons or more. Robert Charters of the Mill Road has recently made several good sales from his fine herd of shorthorns. Among the buyers were Henry Datars of Hay, John Pfaff of Hay and D. Grassick of Stanley. At the annual meeting of Egmondville Church, Messrs. John Beattie and Geo. Coleman were appointed to the managing hoard instead of Messrs.. P.M. Chesney and John Lose who wished to retire. Wm. Amens of town has had a telephone placed in his residence on Goderich Street. - Charles Wilson of town has disposed of his grocery stock to Messrs. Beatie, Bros. who are selling off the stock. Munn Bros. of Leadbury have placed a 40 horse power engine in their new saw mill. Findaly McIntosh of Leadbury is busy cutting stove wood, grinding grain and cutting straw for the neighbouring parries. Tuesday morning about six o'clock, the most serious fire in Blyth :s history occurred. 11 started in Mr. Stothers bakery which was completely consumed, together with J.G. Moor's hardware. W. SCott, boots and shoes, Heffron Bros. and the Bank of Hamilton. January 16, 1925 The Cromarty congregation held a very successful wood -bee in Andrew McLachlan''• bush, cutting about 20 cords of wood for use in the church. The ice harvest of Walton is improving cls the winter strengthens and the merchants and butchers have secured 0 good supply: Percy McMichael of Constance, held a very successful wood been and on the following Monday treated the boys to a party. An address referring to one of the most enterprising business, J.W. Ortwein of Hensall, was given him by the Hensall Methodist Sunday School. Arch Campbell of McKillop left for Cleveland to visit his sisters who live there. The sacred cantata "The Light Eternal" was repeated in First Presbyterian Church before a congregation that filled the church to capacity. Mr and Mrs. M.R. Rennie were the leader and organist and the following ttok special parts: Miss Edith McKay, Mrs..W.A. Wright, H. Murray, James SCott, J. Beattie, M.R. Rennie, D.R. Reid, Miss Janet Hays, Dorothy Kent, Miss Patterson. Miss Olive McCormick of the Bell Telephone office had the misfortune to trip and fall at the KW and break her ankle. While curling at the rink Neil Gillespie had the misfortune to slip and fall on the handle of a curling stone, fracturing two ribs. January 13, 1950 Four of the volunteers shoveled industrially in preparing the foundation for ice in the Seaforth Memorial Centre. They are Wally Crich, Tuckersmith, Lac Walter Smith, Vancouver, Frank Johnson, Dublin and Wilson Campbell, Dublin. Miss Mary Holland and Teresa Maloney successfully passed the examinations set by the Registered Music Assoc. of Ontario. The Province of Ontario, Savings Office has been moved to the Cardno Block. 71wo windows were blown in in at the home of Mr. and Mrs. James F. Scott, Thornton Hall, during the high wind. . Many friends had the opportunity of hearing the beautiful tenor voice of W. T. Hays on a record. He had some made and sent them to his sister, Mrs. J. M. Govenlock. January 9, 1975 Lack of flexibility in the township zoning bylaw caused criticism at the inaugural meeting of Tuckersmith council Tuesday evening. Reeve Elgin Thompson presided at the six hour meeting which continued until nearly two o'clock. Wednesday morning. He said he would like to see the bylaw changed to be more reasonable for the township. Thanks to someone with a rifle who shot out six insulators and several, conductors on an Ontario Hydro line of the outskirts of Seaforth. Power was off in many part of Seaforth, Wednesday morning for about forty minutes. - Tlwentyfour minutes after midnight, as the new year began, at the Seaforth Community Hospital, a daughter was born to Jane and Kenneth McLeod of RR 2 Stafa. 1