HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2000-11-22, Page 1uolaNia.r. . .
November 22, 2000
Si
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Local weather
Wednesday --Cloudy;
with scattered flurries.
High O.
Thursday --Mix of sun,
and cloud. High -1.
low -6
Friday --Cloudy. High 5.
Low. -3. .
Saturday --Mainly
sunny. High 9. Low 1.
From Environment Canada
In brief
Christmas
parade,
Tree of
Lights,
mark start
of holiday
season
With some hoping it
will last until the
weekend, Christmas is
about to hit Seaforth as
quickly as the snows that
arrived this week.
Friday sees Santa's
first arrival to town at the
Lions Club's Santa Claus
Parade.
This year's theme is "A
Fairy Tale Christmas"
and the parade begins at
7 p.m. from its traditional
line-up point at Rona
Cashway.
Featuring a host of
floats, bands and walkers,
the parade will follow
Main Street to the Agri-
plex where Santa will
visit with the children
' after the parade.
There will also be hot
refreshments,
Huron County
Christmas Bureau
volunteers will again be
walking the parade route
with shopping carts to
collect food or toy
donations for the bureau.
There will also be
donation buckets in the
carts for anyone wishing
to make a cash donation.
The Knights of
Columbas will also be
helping with volunteers
able to empty their carts
on the float along the
route to be able to collect
more.
Saturday sees the
Business Improvement
Area's annual Christmas
party taking place where
the town's three citizens
of the year, Jean Ross,
Charles Smith and Judy
Jansen, will be honoured.
Then Sunday evening,
the Seaforth Community
Hospital's Auxiliary's
annual Tree of Lights
celebration will take
place at 7 p.m.
Hot cider, homemade
cookies and carolling will
help add to everyone's
Christmas spirits as the
community gathers on
the hospital's front lawn
for the lighting of their
giant Christmas tree.
Inside...
Federal election Nov. 27...
Meet your candidates
Peps 3-$
Wrier wires
Page !
An age -enhanced photo of Mistie Murray was released
yesterday (Nov. 211.
Age -enhanced
photo
of Mistie
released
An age -enhanced photo of Mistie Murraj', missing for
more than five years, was released yesterday by her
mother, Anne Murray.
Something police have refused to do.
OPP Det. Supt. Chris Lewis told The London Free
Press, a sister Sun Media publication to the Huron
Expositor one reason why is police believe Murray is
dead.
Missing for more more than five years now from
Goderich, after moving there from the St. Columban area
with her parents, Steve an Anne Murray. police accused
Steve of murdering her and dumping her body in a lake.
However, Steve was found not guilty of murder charges
after a trial in Goderich in 1997.
Now, Anne has filed complaints with the OPP
Professional Standards Bureau and accusations of
misconduct by the OPP are being investigated by York
Regional Police.
OPP still assert Mistie's body is in Lake Huron, despite
the inability of a special sonar search of the lake to
produce a body.
Lewis, who told The Free Press he trusts the officers'
information, said even if they are wrong, the OPP can't
divert resources to look for a 22 -year-old woman, Mistie's
current age. who would have contacted friends and family
it she had wanted to reach them.
The photo, released at a press conference in Stratford
yesterday. will be reprinted on thousands of posters and
millions of envelopes sent out by Rogers Cable and CIBC
visa.
Walton school
purchased by
local residents
Group of eight made io-minute decision
to pool resources and buy school at auction
By Susan Hundertmark
Expositor Staff
Walton Public School was
bought for $117,000 by a
group of eight Walton -area
residents and business people
when it was auctioned off by
the Avon Maitland District
School Board Nov. 8.
Bidding against two
Kitchener businessmen who
had plans to turn the school
into low-income housing, the
eight had -come to the auction
separately but banded
together moments before the
auction to keep the school's
ownership in the community,
says Jeff McGavin, one of
the eight shareholders.
"When we heard them
speak of putting low income
housing into the school, we
didn't like that idea and, we
came together in about 10
minutes. We had all come to
the auction by ourselves with
a number in mind that wasn't
near as high as the price we
paid. Everyone wanted to
keep it in the community," he
says.
McGavin says the eight
partners are still in the
process of forming a
company with plans to turn
the school into a small
business centre.
While they have received
phone calls from all over
Huron' County from
interested. businesses,
McGavin says legal details
must still be worked out
before any businesses move
in.
"We've been having
meetings and are working on
a name for it. People are
calling from all over Huron
County because it's a central
location but we still have to
get our ducks in a line," he
says.
While not all eight partners
See GROUP, Page 2
Ross named `humanitarian'
By Susan Hundertmork
Expositor Staff
Winner of the
Humanitarian Award of this
year's Seaforth Citizenship
Awards, Jean Ross says she
doesn't really consider
herself a volunteer.
While there is a long list of
organizations and individuals
she's involved with each
week, Ross sees her
involvement as mostly fun
and casual.
"I don't really see it as time
volunteering. I just drop in
and see someone at one of the
retirement homes or at the
hospital if I happen to be
downtown and spend 20
minutes with them. It
becomes a job if it's too
regimented. But, it's amazing
what 20 minutes will do for
someone if they need
cheering up," she says.
A member of First
Presbyterian Church, Ross
operates the lift on Sundays,
helps with the offering and
accompanies the minister to
monthly church services at
the local nursing homes.
She also helps out at
See ROSS, Page 12
Jean Ross
Jansen awarded for sporting efforts
By Scott Hilgendorff
Expositor Editor •
When she started coaching
her daughter's ringette team,
Judy Jansen saw a need to
get more involved.
"You can't make
something better without
being involved," said Jansen,
this year's recipient of the
Service to Sports Award, part
of the recreation
department's citizen of the
year awards.
Jansen moved from
coaching to the ringette
executive of which she
became president for two
years.
From there, she moved on
to the minor hockey
executive and is no a co-
chair of the Bill Carnochan
Memorial Hockey
Tournament which takes
place later this winter.
She got involved in that
tournament as a long-time
friend of the Carnochans but
got involved in the
executives because she
wanted to see the sports
grown in the community.
"It was my way of having
a voice." she said.
"We need more people to
get involved in running the
organizations." said Jansen
who also ice captain,
scheduling ice time for
games and practices.
Being involved in minor
sports also lets her stay
involved with her children,
Nick and Trisha.
A lover of sports, Jansen
Site JANSEN, Pogo 12
Charles Smith's school efforts lead to civic award
By Scott HSgendorff
Expositor Editor
When he agreed to help with the fight to
keep Seaforth's high school open, Charles
Smith had no idea it would start him on a path
that now sees him assuming the role of a
trustee for the Avon Maitland District School
Board.
"Once 1 get involved, I'm not inclined to
get uninvolved," said Smith, who is this
year's recipient of the Civic Service Award,
one of three Citizen of the Year awards
presented to local residents and coordinated
by the Seaforth Recreation Department.
Smith, owner of Boilersmith Ltd, was first
approached in 1998 by Maureen Agar and
Carolanne Doig to see if he would help with a
current struggle to keep the high school open.
By March, 1998, Smith was heavily
involved in a locally driven movement to
convince the board not to close the high
school because of declining enrollment at
which time, the school was temporarily saved
by a 5-4 vote against closing it.
Smith continued to work with community
members knowing the issue was not over and
a legal defence fund was started shortly after
that first vote.
Now the Student Success Foundation,
donations were still added through 1999 and
2000 when the school closure process got
even more complicated.
In 1999, the board again listed the school
for possible closure and eventually, decided it
would close.
Now armed with piles of paperwork and
board documents, Smith became a driving
force behind the community's legal fight to
keep the school open.
Smith and several community leaders took
the board to court and succeeded in having the
board's closure policy declared unfair and its
closure decision was overtumed.
During the more than two-year period,
Smith remained an advocate the board's
policies were unfair and that a proper public
process was not taking place.
"I found their actions so offensive, I
couldn't help but be involved," said Smith, a
graduate of the high school who had already
•
See SMITH, Page 12
Chafes Smah and stocks of school closure research documents.
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