Lucknow Sentinel, 2009-05-13, Page 1ce thin
about tearnwor
is that you
always have
others on your
side.
—Ma et
Luckn . w• —
Visdnesdaz
Ma*2ON
Week 20 — Vol. 136
1.00
gst included
Publications Mail Registration
No. 07656
Bringing Together
Huron & Bruce
frica was life
Submitted photo
An African experience...:
Ashley Husk a registered nu at Victoria Hospital in London went on a four week
trip to Uganda from March 26 -April 22 to help assess the medical needs of'many.
Huron -Kinloss Twp. native Husk is seen here with all of the student of God's Gift
School in Jinja, Uganda. They are holding up the Canadian pencils, that she gave
them.
Local teen goes high in OHL draft
BY GARIT REID
Sentinel Staff
Ripley native Garrett
Meurs has begun the
next leg of his hockey
careeras the Ontario
Hockey League's
Plymouth Whalers
selected him first round
and 13th overall in the
this year's priority
Selection draft on May
2.
ICA a big step up for
the 16 -year-old who
played hockey for the
Huron -Perth AAA
Lakers (minor midget),
but an adjustment his
Garrett Meurs
Huron -Ph coach
Kevin Merlknows
he can make.
"He's the kind of kid
who can take everything
on his shoulders in a
pressure situation and
it's something he'll
bring to the OHL with
him," said Medan.
Meurs had an excel-
lent 2008-09 season
offensively for Huron -
Perth as he tallied 95
points in 67 games and
it's a big reason • why
many .OHL scouts were
interested in the young
centre.
Murray .. Kuntz of
Creative Arts Agency
(CAA) and Meurs advi-
sor was not surprised
that Meurs went so high
in the draft because of
the skills he has as an
offensive threat on the
ice.
Continued on page 9
uron K'inioss
'ownship. native Ashley
Husk returned April 22
from her African adventure
in Uganda (east Africa).
She spent four weeks help-
ing out the people of Jinja
(west of the capital city of
Kampala) with her ex i-
ence as a registered nurse.
For Husk it was an expe-
rience of a lifetime and a
roller coaster of emotion
that she'll never forget.
She's already planning to
go back because she knows
there's . a lot more a she can
do for the people of Jinja.
"1;plan to go back, .I real-
ly want to go back to Jinja
and to the surrounding vil-
lages," said Husk. "Next
time I go my focus is going
to be more in rural villages
to teach preventive health
education, to ` keep them
healthy and out of the hos-
pital."
os-pita)"
Husk came to Ugandato
help as a volunteer, .but
what she didn't expect was
the emotional impact she
got during her stay. The
emotion hit her right away
as she visited an AIDS
clinic, where people
passed away from the terri-
ble. disease that impacts
thousands of Africans
every day.
However, with the sad
tragedies of the disease,
every now and then a posi-
tive light shines through.
and Husk experienced it
first hand.
"There was one lady we
went to visit in a village
and she had 12 kids and six
of them died of AIDS and
she took care of their 22
grandchildren," said Husk.
e tee
fDS and they were
negative, so that was a-mir-
acle.
With death : there is also
birth ithe spectrum of life
and it's also something
Husk experienced first
hand when she visited the
maternity ward of the. Jinja
hospital. Delivering a bab,
is something : Husk
never been a ` part of- as a
nurse in Canada and it was
a lot of pressure at first, but
it's something she'll never
forget,
"I've never had a mater-
nity experience - before, so
it was one of thy greatest
days ever," said. Husk.
``Just holding a new life
and I'mhalfway across the
world, it was a prettyawe-
some
re awe
P
some experience."
Husk also was in awe of
the nursesand doctors at
the Jinja hospital because
of :how much they were
able to do on a daily basis
with limited resources.
"There is a book of stan-
dards and practices for
nursing in Canada, but in
Uganda there is no book
because they don't have
.the resources, but they are
phenomenal with what
they have to work with,"
said Husk. "It's really
impressive and their doc-
tors are amazing."
The people. of Uganda
may not have a lot of the
resources Canadians take
for granted, but Husk was
able to see they don't live
unhappy lives, but .rather
the opposite. What Husk
saw was apeople who are
laid back and notbogged
down by consumerism.
They live for their fami-
lies.
Continued on page 8