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Home My WebLink AboutHuron Expositor, 2004-02-04, Page 1Magnum Canada Mauve Joy Finlayson & Sharon Medd Mortgage Consultants "Finally, a company that starts with a discount" I \ 11.. ,. `N(:rI Jr'th (5 1 1 ) 5 27-11561► iI9NTEE 41.1rt TL) Sharon Medd, Associate Broker M.V.A. Appraiser Visit: mis.ca for information of listings in Huron/Perth ednesday, Feb. 4, 2004 ANINIMINOMew r Dote Mott, CFP. B.Maath •kMacgainhaeJ onto GIC rales as d R' 3, X01 Best G.I.C. Rates Samnterest Account 2.05%* 3.j%% isle% CARTIER PARTNERS FINANCIAL SERVICES I:II■iiiL! 26 Main St., Seaforth 527-2222 In brief Huron East youth charged after teacher's house vandalized A 17 -year-old Huron East youth is one of two youths charged with mischief under $5,000 after a teacher living in Clinton awoke to hear something thrown through an upper bedroom window on Jan. 30. The house on Rattenbury Street has been vandalized several times over the past year by area youth, says a Huron OPP press release. The owner was able to tell police that two youths were seen running from the area wearing masks. Later that day, police arrested one youth and then a second on Feb. 1. The Huron East youth was also charged with using a disguise with intent to commit a crime. The second youth, who is from Bluewater, received a third charge of criminal harassment. Both are scheduled to attend court in Goderich on April 8. Stolen truck found in Seaforth parking lot A truck stolen from the Picton area was found abandoned in a municipal parking lot on John Street in Seaforth on Jan. 29. Huron OPP were called about the red 1988 Chevrolet pick-up truck by the Huron East public works department because it was interfering with snow removal. The vehicle was towed to a local garage and the owner' and police in Picton were notified. Anyone with any related information is asked to call the Huron OPP or Crime Stoppers. Inside... Local workers celebrate raise in minimum wage... Page 5 MdWain having saxing Yea - Peg* Pepe 6 More figure skating pictures..., Page 1$ Council needs `wizards' for 2004 budget: Seili By Susan Hundertmark Expositor Editor Huron East councillors will have to be "real wizards" while planning council's 2004 budget, Mayor Joe Seili said at Huron East's Jan. 20 meeting. "We've got all the agricultural sectors down now - even the dairy farmers are hurting. And, when every industry in agriculture hurts, it hurts the Main Street," he said. While looking over the budget figures expected in the draft for 2004, council was told by Deputy -Clerk Brad Knight that 2003 will end with a deficit of $276,433 and he anticipates significant increases in policing, insurance and Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS). Knight said the most significant area that was over budget in 2003 was transportation services, which was up by $207,000 because of increased fuel costs and repairs to several pieces of old equipment including road graders and street sweepers. As well, he said police costs are expected to increase in 2004 by $100,000, insurance costs by $60,000 and OMERS by $50,000. "This budget is going to be very challenging to both council and staff," Knight's report told council. "The budget is under a fair bit of stress. Things aren't looking very good right now," he said. Tuckersmith Coun. Larry McGrath expressed concern that Huron East ratepayers are not going to be able to afford to meet the rising municipal costs in their taxes. "Not everybody works for the government or for union shops. There's a lot of people whose pay isn't going up at the rate our budget is going up," he said. Deputy -Mayor Bernie MacLellan warned that during preliminary budget talks at the Huron County level, a 50 per cent increase in the budget would be necessary to meet the wishlist of every department head in the county. - "There's no way we would allow it but that Soo PUBLIC, Page 2 Blind student thriving in JK at SPS with help from his `team' By Susan Hundertmark Expositor Editor As the only blind student at Seaforth Public School, Jason Lamont has become the best known student there since he began Junior Kindergarten in the fall. But, while the mobs of curious students trying to help him have calmed down, his mom Tracey is glad to see his peers are seeing past his blindness to the personality underneath. "Jason loves school. He gets up excited every day and wants to go to school. He's always been very sociable but he's started to shine even more nowthat the kids are starting to see him for himself. He's quite the comedian and he's got some close friends at schodl," she says. Jason's teacher for the blind, John Baxter, agrees that Jason's a happy four- year-old having a positive school experience. "I don't think there's anyone at school that doesn't know Jason but mostly he's just another kid in the community - with a lot of team members in the background," says Baxter. Jason's blindness is one result of his premature birth at 23 weeks and he and his family have had help from the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) with an early intervention specialist from birth. "Our motto from the beginning is that people who can see can go to the world but that people who can't have to have the world brought to them. That's what we're doing for Jason. We S.. BLINDNESS, Pogo 2 Susan Hundertmork photo four-year-old Jason Lamont works at his brailler with help from his teacher John Baxter at Seaforth Publk School while his educational assistant Niki Saunders looks on. Susan Hundertmork photo Laura Delchiaro, of Seaforth, performs a spin during the ladies preliminary elements competition at the interclub championships in Seaforth on Sunday at the arena. -Seaforth hosts first skating competition • m io years By Sara Campbell Expositor Staff Despite months of hard work and a week of stormy weather, the Seaforth Figure Skating Club hosted a successful regional figure skating competition for the first time in 10 years. "It went very well, we were very pleased with it and have had many good comments. It's great to see all that hard work pay off," said Deb Ward, president of the Seaforth Figure Skating Club. "My knees are black and blue from all the praying I did this week about the weather. We were very lucky." Approximately 200 skaters from 12 area clubs participated in the Interclub North Regional Competition hosted by the Seaforth Figure Skating Club on Feb. 1. "It gave an opportunity for many of our local skaters to finally be able to participate in the competition and a chance to skate in front of their hometown. And they did very well," said Ward. A bronze medal went to Christina Schelken, of Seaforth, in the Canskate seven year-old category. Nicole Steep `received a bronze medal in the Canskate ages eight and older. 5.. JUDGES, Page IS Total Image Day of Beauty The "ultimate glft" any woman would love! t 1