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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1989-09-20, Page 1EXETER FALL FAIR Sept. 22, 23, 24 7 Police office open ZURICH- Zurich has had a high- ly visible police presence since spring, when an Extended" Service Office under the supervision of the Exeter detachment of the OPP opened in the village. Since then, OPP Const. Rick Borden has spent '75 hours each month in the area, ei- ther in the Zurich office or on patrol in the community and the surround- ing township of Hay. The Zurich office is one of three that have been set up locally to provide a higher visibility of polic- ing services, and a convenient meet- ing place for the public and the po- lice. The other area offices are located in Bayfield and Vanastra. The operational costs, including a filing cabinet and a phone, arc shared 50-50 with Hay township. Village residents now know that if the OPP sign is on the front door of the municipal office, and a cruiser is Please turn to page 3 North Middlesex & Lambton Since 1873 411C Gaiser-Kneale Insurance Exeter 235-2420 Grand Bend 238-8484 Hensall 262-2119 Clinton 482-9747 Wednesday, September 20, 1989 "Move over I'rn p Sunday's Terry Foz Run was Exeter's eighth such annual event, but this year's 44 participants brought in Just over $0,000 - more than double any previous year's total. Russ Watson and son Josh appreciated the superb weather for Sunday afternoon's 10 kilometre trek around town. s _ Fair exhibits on extra day EXETER - The 1989 Exeter Fall Fair which will be this weekend promises to be bigger and better than ever. For the first time in the 135 year history of the fair, visitors will be able to view exhibits for an ex- tra day. All indoor exhibits which must be in place by noon on Friday will remain on display until 4 p.m. Sunday afternoon. The theme of the fair this year is Focus on Horses and almost every aspect of the fair will feature this animal. While the doors to the South Huron Rec Center open Friday at 6 p.m. the fair officially opens at 7:30 p.m. Doing the honours to send the fair merrily on its way will be Exeter youngster Josh Watson with help from area politicians. Josh who is a member of the Special Athlete Rid- ing Institute will also be the marshal for the Saturday morning parade. The Friday evening program format will be a little different than in previous years. Patti O'Toole was crowned 1989 Fair Queen a few weeks ago at the an- nual fair dance which was moved ahead due to the usual dancing space being used by the extended time of exhibits and displays. ' The Friday night entertainment will be provided by the New Huronia Singers and a group of stepdancers. Please turn to page 3 75 cents Quick .change artist warning LUCAN - Ontario Provincial Po- lice would like to warn area busi- nesses of a quick -change artist pos- sibly operating in the area. One store in the Strathroy area was vic- timized this week by a man who matches the description of a man operating in the Kitchener -Waterloo region. The suspect enters a store and buys under five dollars of merchan- dise with a $50 bill. When he re- ceives his change, he then gives the cashier nine or ten five dollar bills and requests to buy the $50 bill back. The suspect acts friendly and con- stantly talks to the cashier to con- fuse the cashier while exchanging the money. When the cashier gives back the $50 bill to the suspect, he then requests five -twenty dollar bills and gives the cashier the same five dollar bills and the fifty dollar bill. By exchanging all this money and continually talking, the suspect can confuse the store cashier into giv- ing him between approximately $45 to $95 in change for a purchase of under fiver dollars. This subject is described as: A white male in his mid 30's to 40 yrs. old. Approx. 5'9" in height and a stocky,. build. He has auburn/ brown curly hair and a mustache. He is believed to be operating a newer model BBN Thunderbird of Cougar style vehicle with no plate on the front of the vehicle. Police are asking all stores to be very alert when making change in this manner to avoid being fraudu- lently tricked. Report any suspi- cious persons acting in a similar manner or matching the above de- scription to police immediately. Approve arena siding EXETER - A special meeting of the South Huron Recreation Centre board Friday approved the re- cladding of the arena, including the addition of roof extensions over the entrances. Town council consented to the project Monday evening, even though the tendered cost is more than estimated a year ago. The exterior walls of the building are to be covered in metal siding, mainly as a solution to deteriorat- ing 'concrete brickwork, but the board hopes it will give the struc- ture an aesthetic facelift.at the same time. The cost of installing the cladding was tendered at $94,830, plus an ad- ditional $7,900 for the special work set aside for west and south entranc- , es. Cam Stewardson said the contrac- tor disagreed with the architect's origninal estimate of how much metal was needed. This was why the price tag on the work was high- er than anticipated. Reeve Bill Mickle noted the ex- pense was about $19,000 higher than a year-old estimate. Councillor Dave Urlin noted the town changed architects because of such discrepancies related to the project. Mickle wanted to know why the mansard roofs over the entrances couldn't be deleted from the plans, but council approved the board's recommendation intact, including the -suggestion $14,018 be redirect- ed to the project from the town's PRIDE grant, a suggestion Mickle voted against. "The PRIDE project does not cover the arena," said Mickle. . Even with the grant, a shortfall of $5,768 is expected to put a deficit on the arena's books until the next budget. Mayor on a leash EXETER - If you're driving along Exeter's streets on Sunday, October 1 and happen to see Laurie Dykstra walking with Bruce Shaw on a leash, don't panic. It's all part of the Lions Club's first ever Walk-A-Dog-A-Thon to raise money for Canine Vision. Club spokesman John Stephens told the T -A the activities will start at MacNaughton Park between noon and 1 p.m. B.I.A. manager. Dolly Creces will have chairman Bob Lammie on aleash as well. Area school stu- dents are busy collecting sponsors with a fairly high level of competi- tion between Exeter Public School and Usborne Central School in par- ticular. Either principal Al Taylor or Carole Anne Yuzwa will have to walk the route on a leash depending on which school submits the low- est percentage of pledge sheets. Shelter and counselling available for youths EXETER - The Safe Homes for Youth program is entering its sec- ond year in South Huron with re- newed funding, and recognition from government agencies as a unique and efficient system for helping teenagers in crisis situa- The program opened its door in August 1988 to provide shelter and counselling to youths who find themselves without a place to stay during family disputes. . "We've had an average of 20 calls a month," said Sharon Wurm, one Bigger board - Safe Homes for Youth expanded its board of directors this year to Include these members: Rev. Duke Vipperman (back left), Rick Graham, Police Chief Larry Hardy, Dr. David Hod- der, John Gaiser (middle left), Bev Robinson, Mary Lee, end Dianne McQuaid. In front are the pro- gram co-ordinators Sharon Wurm and Deb McCann. of two part-time employees who run the program. "Of those we've had 15 kids come in for help." Wurm said Safe Homes was orig- inally set up to provide temporary shelter for teenagers, but has found a greater demand exists for "crisis intervention" counselling, becom- ing what Wurm now calls the "backbone" of the organization. The program receives a $54,000 grant from the ministry of commu- nity '!' d rocs ! & r c- s, aft" ra;a4:b other funds through local organiza- tions and donors. A second part-time employee, !t4 ^12 h2v b(VIradriari.01 year to the Safe Homes staff to help cope with demand for its` counsel- ling services. A larger board of di- rectors draws from a biggerr sector of the community as well. While Safe Homes offers a crisis hotline for those in trouble to call, Wurm notes most calls for assis- tance come from hospitals, the high school, the police, the employment centre, and the Huron County Health Unit. Calls for help usually occur when a family with rigid rules can no longer tolerate what Wurm calls the "normal misbehavior" of a teenager. Crisis intervention is available to help the family make a change in its guidelines and expectations. An important aspect of the ser- vice, said Wurm, is the way it opens up the eyes of people in the area to the fact that riot everyone has the same "normal" family life and that family crises are not limit- ed to those large cities. An unexpected peak taxed the re- sources of the Safe Homes organi- zation in April when five calls for shelter came in in one, week. Wurm says this is why new homes are being recruited whenever possi- ble. More will be added if the de- mand is there. The program is aimed_ at helping youths Al the county south of Clin- ton, but Wurm says they are not prepared to turn away anyone in need . Safe Homes for Youth is being held up by the ministry as an exam - pie to—tither communitl'e§ 'of what can be accomplished even with lim- ited resources,' limited manpower, and community support. `-Siincoe'is `lot kti similar program and is being re- ferred to Wurm and McCann for ad- vice and guidance. Rick Graham pointed out the ministry is especially pleased wttn how Safe Homes is aimed at what is called a "service gap" - anyone over 16 is out of the jurisdiction of .Family and Children's Services, but does not qualify for support from adult agencies until 18. "They like the fact that the pro- gram is.directed to that age group," said Graham, who added that a min- istry -operated safe house would likely require a full time staff of five. "They see a lot of 4ervice for the tax dollar for this kind of set-up." Graham says the high school stu- dents are more aware of the Safe Homes service than they were a year "We use the system quite a bit," said Exeter Police Chief Larry Har- dy, explaining that the availability of Safe Homes counselling gives a police officer facing a family dis- pute an option. "You can probably save a bad sit- uation," said Hardy, suggesting that the program has prevented violence or families breaking apart. At least one advantage, says Hardy, is that his officers no longer have to deal with students sleeping on park benches and have nowhere to send them. Another advantage, according to the police chief, is that giving a youth somewhere to stay reduces instances of crime such as theft or break ins. The Safe Homes program does not just offer a place to stay. There curfews the house guest must follow, as well as help- ing with household chores. "It's not a picnic," said Hardy. McCann and Wurm are also find-' ing the Safe tiiiilies sci vn.cs are - gaming the respect of parents. "Lots of times now, the second call comes from the parent," said Wtum,_ Graham praised the support of the Exeter area for not only helping with the funding, but for the offers from families to. become safe homes themselves. "It just seems the depth of warmth in this community has no limit," he said. The Safe Homes For Youth pro- gram, operated out of the basement of the Exeter United Church, is one of a kind in Ontario. In fact, Hardy wondered if it was the only one in Canada. Its unique approach to solving the problems of troubled teens has earned it nominations for both the Ontario and Federal Solici- tors -General Crime Prevention Awards, the selections for which will be made later this year. 4 Inside Readers write Initiation sparks reaction page3 Laidlaw Moves to new terminal page 5 Organist retires UC honours Rob Cameron page 8 Win tourney SH Panthers best in Kitchener page 14 New hockey School and team in Zurich • page 18 Police office open ZURICH- Zurich has had a high- ly visible police presence since spring, when an Extended" Service Office under the supervision of the Exeter detachment of the OPP opened in the village. Since then, OPP Const. Rick Borden has spent '75 hours each month in the area, ei- ther in the Zurich office or on patrol in the community and the surround- ing township of Hay. The Zurich office is one of three that have been set up locally to provide a higher visibility of polic- ing services, and a convenient meet- ing place for the public and the po- lice. The other area offices are located in Bayfield and Vanastra. The operational costs, including a filing cabinet and a phone, arc shared 50-50 with Hay township. Village residents now know that if the OPP sign is on the front door of the municipal office, and a cruiser is Please turn to page 3 North Middlesex & Lambton Since 1873 411C Gaiser-Kneale Insurance Exeter 235-2420 Grand Bend 238-8484 Hensall 262-2119 Clinton 482-9747 Wednesday, September 20, 1989 "Move over I'rn p Sunday's Terry Foz Run was Exeter's eighth such annual event, but this year's 44 participants brought in Just over $0,000 - more than double any previous year's total. Russ Watson and son Josh appreciated the superb weather for Sunday afternoon's 10 kilometre trek around town. s _ Fair exhibits on extra day EXETER - The 1989 Exeter Fall Fair which will be this weekend promises to be bigger and better than ever. For the first time in the 135 year history of the fair, visitors will be able to view exhibits for an ex- tra day. All indoor exhibits which must be in place by noon on Friday will remain on display until 4 p.m. Sunday afternoon. The theme of the fair this year is Focus on Horses and almost every aspect of the fair will feature this animal. While the doors to the South Huron Rec Center open Friday at 6 p.m. the fair officially opens at 7:30 p.m. Doing the honours to send the fair merrily on its way will be Exeter youngster Josh Watson with help from area politicians. Josh who is a member of the Special Athlete Rid- ing Institute will also be the marshal for the Saturday morning parade. The Friday evening program format will be a little different than in previous years. Patti O'Toole was crowned 1989 Fair Queen a few weeks ago at the an- nual fair dance which was moved ahead due to the usual dancing space being used by the extended time of exhibits and displays. ' The Friday night entertainment will be provided by the New Huronia Singers and a group of stepdancers. Please turn to page 3 75 cents Quick .change artist warning LUCAN - Ontario Provincial Po- lice would like to warn area busi- nesses of a quick -change artist pos- sibly operating in the area. One store in the Strathroy area was vic- timized this week by a man who matches the description of a man operating in the Kitchener -Waterloo region. The suspect enters a store and buys under five dollars of merchan- dise with a $50 bill. When he re- ceives his change, he then gives the cashier nine or ten five dollar bills and requests to buy the $50 bill back. The suspect acts friendly and con- stantly talks to the cashier to con- fuse the cashier while exchanging the money. When the cashier gives back the $50 bill to the suspect, he then requests five -twenty dollar bills and gives the cashier the same five dollar bills and the fifty dollar bill. By exchanging all this money and continually talking, the suspect can confuse the store cashier into giv- ing him between approximately $45 to $95 in change for a purchase of under fiver dollars. This subject is described as: A white male in his mid 30's to 40 yrs. old. Approx. 5'9" in height and a stocky,. build. He has auburn/ brown curly hair and a mustache. He is believed to be operating a newer model BBN Thunderbird of Cougar style vehicle with no plate on the front of the vehicle. Police are asking all stores to be very alert when making change in this manner to avoid being fraudu- lently tricked. Report any suspi- cious persons acting in a similar manner or matching the above de- scription to police immediately. Approve arena siding EXETER - A special meeting of the South Huron Recreation Centre board Friday approved the re- cladding of the arena, including the addition of roof extensions over the entrances. Town council consented to the project Monday evening, even though the tendered cost is more than estimated a year ago. The exterior walls of the building are to be covered in metal siding, mainly as a solution to deteriorat- ing 'concrete brickwork, but the board hopes it will give the struc- ture an aesthetic facelift.at the same time. The cost of installing the cladding was tendered at $94,830, plus an ad- ditional $7,900 for the special work set aside for west and south entranc- , es. Cam Stewardson said the contrac- tor disagreed with the architect's origninal estimate of how much metal was needed. This was why the price tag on the work was high- er than anticipated. Reeve Bill Mickle noted the ex- pense was about $19,000 higher than a year-old estimate. Councillor Dave Urlin noted the town changed architects because of such discrepancies related to the project. Mickle wanted to know why the mansard roofs over the entrances couldn't be deleted from the plans, but council approved the board's recommendation intact, including the -suggestion $14,018 be redirect- ed to the project from the town's PRIDE grant, a suggestion Mickle voted against. "The PRIDE project does not cover the arena," said Mickle. . Even with the grant, a shortfall of $5,768 is expected to put a deficit on the arena's books until the next budget. Mayor on a leash EXETER - If you're driving along Exeter's streets on Sunday, October 1 and happen to see Laurie Dykstra walking with Bruce Shaw on a leash, don't panic. It's all part of the Lions Club's first ever Walk-A-Dog-A-Thon to raise money for Canine Vision. Club spokesman John Stephens told the T -A the activities will start at MacNaughton Park between noon and 1 p.m. B.I.A. manager. Dolly Creces will have chairman Bob Lammie on aleash as well. Area school stu- dents are busy collecting sponsors with a fairly high level of competi- tion between Exeter Public School and Usborne Central School in par- ticular. Either principal Al Taylor or Carole Anne Yuzwa will have to walk the route on a leash depending on which school submits the low- est percentage of pledge sheets. Shelter and counselling available for youths EXETER - The Safe Homes for Youth program is entering its sec- ond year in South Huron with re- newed funding, and recognition from government agencies as a unique and efficient system for helping teenagers in crisis situa- The program opened its door in August 1988 to provide shelter and counselling to youths who find themselves without a place to stay during family disputes. . "We've had an average of 20 calls a month," said Sharon Wurm, one Bigger board - Safe Homes for Youth expanded its board of directors this year to Include these members: Rev. Duke Vipperman (back left), Rick Graham, Police Chief Larry Hardy, Dr. David Hod- der, John Gaiser (middle left), Bev Robinson, Mary Lee, end Dianne McQuaid. In front are the pro- gram co-ordinators Sharon Wurm and Deb McCann. of two part-time employees who run the program. "Of those we've had 15 kids come in for help." Wurm said Safe Homes was orig- inally set up to provide temporary shelter for teenagers, but has found a greater demand exists for "crisis intervention" counselling, becom- ing what Wurm now calls the "backbone" of the organization. The program receives a $54,000 grant from the ministry of commu- nity '!' d rocs ! & r c- s, aft" ra;a4:b other funds through local organiza- tions and donors. A second part-time employee, !t4 ^12 h2v b(VIradriari.01 year to the Safe Homes staff to help cope with demand for its` counsel- ling services. A larger board of di- rectors draws from a biggerr sector of the community as well. While Safe Homes offers a crisis hotline for those in trouble to call, Wurm notes most calls for assis- tance come from hospitals, the high school, the police, the employment centre, and the Huron County Health Unit. Calls for help usually occur when a family with rigid rules can no longer tolerate what Wurm calls the "normal misbehavior" of a teenager. Crisis intervention is available to help the family make a change in its guidelines and expectations. An important aspect of the ser- vice, said Wurm, is the way it opens up the eyes of people in the area to the fact that riot everyone has the same "normal" family life and that family crises are not limit- ed to those large cities. An unexpected peak taxed the re- sources of the Safe Homes organi- zation in April when five calls for shelter came in in one, week. Wurm says this is why new homes are being recruited whenever possi- ble. More will be added if the de- mand is there. The program is aimed_ at helping youths Al the county south of Clin- ton, but Wurm says they are not prepared to turn away anyone in need . Safe Homes for Youth is being held up by the ministry as an exam - pie to—tither communitl'e§ 'of what can be accomplished even with lim- ited resources,' limited manpower, and community support. `-Siincoe'is `lot kti similar program and is being re- ferred to Wurm and McCann for ad- vice and guidance. Rick Graham pointed out the ministry is especially pleased wttn how Safe Homes is aimed at what is called a "service gap" - anyone over 16 is out of the jurisdiction of .Family and Children's Services, but does not qualify for support from adult agencies until 18. "They like the fact that the pro- gram is.directed to that age group," said Graham, who added that a min- istry -operated safe house would likely require a full time staff of five. "They see a lot of 4ervice for the tax dollar for this kind of set-up." Graham says the high school stu- dents are more aware of the Safe Homes service than they were a year "We use the system quite a bit," said Exeter Police Chief Larry Har- dy, explaining that the availability of Safe Homes counselling gives a police officer facing a family dis- pute an option. "You can probably save a bad sit- uation," said Hardy, suggesting that the program has prevented violence or families breaking apart. At least one advantage, says Hardy, is that his officers no longer have to deal with students sleeping on park benches and have nowhere to send them. Another advantage, according to the police chief, is that giving a youth somewhere to stay reduces instances of crime such as theft or break ins. The Safe Homes program does not just offer a place to stay. There curfews the house guest must follow, as well as help- ing with household chores. "It's not a picnic," said Hardy. McCann and Wurm are also find-' ing the Safe tiiiilies sci vn.cs are - gaming the respect of parents. "Lots of times now, the second call comes from the parent," said Wtum,_ Graham praised the support of the Exeter area for not only helping with the funding, but for the offers from families to. become safe homes themselves. "It just seems the depth of warmth in this community has no limit," he said. The Safe Homes For Youth pro- gram, operated out of the basement of the Exeter United Church, is one of a kind in Ontario. In fact, Hardy wondered if it was the only one in Canada. Its unique approach to solving the problems of troubled teens has earned it nominations for both the Ontario and Federal Solici- tors -General Crime Prevention Awards, the selections for which will be made later this year. 4