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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1992-03-11, Page 2Page 2 seeensineeetisser T Imes -Advocate, March 11, 1992 Regional )4 wrap up SthoDl profit draws 300 STRATFORD - t.+ set parents, teachers and taxpay- ers packed Stratford City Hall last Tuesday demanding recon- sideration of recent cuts in stu- dem services by the Perth County Board of Education. The St. Marys Journal Argus reports much of the concern was directed --towards the -issue-- of eliminating all psychometrists and most of the speech language pathologists from the school sys- tem. Among the protestors were delegates -representing students from an -alternative -high-achool- in Listowel, parent of teaming - disabled and hearing-impaired children, a UWO professor of communicative disorders, par- ents from a co-operative nursery school and other teaming disa- bility associations. Li'brary_to open Saturdays .. ST. MARYS - The St. Marys library board unanimously rec- ommended that hours -be re- duced at the St. Marys branch through the week. The St. Marys Journal Argus reports the library will , open at 10:30 a.m. instead of 10 a.m. and close half an hour early at 8 p.m., Monday to Thursday. The library will be open 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays. Should town council approve the board's proposed budget, the library will open Saturdays from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Goderich woman cashes in GODERICH - Edna Powell of Goderich made the long trek to Toronto last week but came home all smiles as she picked up a cool 5256.,337.10. Powell was the lucky holder of the winning ticket in the February 22 Lotto 649 draw. • As reported in the Goderich Signal Star, Powell, 70, plans to share the wealth with her five children, and reunite with her youngest sister from Australia. Crossing guards lost LINTON - Following the annual March break holidays some children in Clinton will be forced to make their own way across Albert and Victoria Streets (Highway 4).as the num- ber of crossing guards in the town have been cut from three to just ono. After consideration by council it was recoinmended that only the Ontario Street guard station at Clinton Public School remain because the majority of children use it. The Clinton -News Records re- ports cost is the main reason for the reduction. Control of guards used to fall under Clinton Police by with the start of the Clinton Police Services Board, guards would have to become pan of the police association, increas- ing cost to the town. Grant delays for arena renovation MITCHELL - Renovation plans this year for the Mitchell and District Arena and Commu- nity Centre may be put on hold because of a delay in announc- ing whether or not grant assis- tance will be available form the Ministry of Tourism and Recrea- tion. 'Me ‘Mitchell Advocate ,the Arena Board was to hear a lfinal ision regarding Win rio gr t funding in late January but a government has reac- c —the grant Raney which will delay any decision until April. IN TJ -TF: NT1 t.S Hope still held out for vacant church nearly two years after monks left -By Fred Groves CLANDEBOYE - it's been almost two years since the grounds of the Franciscan monastery on Highway 4 have peen vacated. sew to passing motorists is a building attached to 117 year-old St. Peter's church that is only par- ty completed and may never be.fmishcd. -1 t'1'990, Father 'Dav'id Ladislaus -Prezed- wiecki and his followers, the Franciscan Fnars of Mary immaculate were evicted. After months of hard physical labour to restore the church and build living quarters, the friars were told by John Sherlock, Bishop of the Landon diocese, to vacate the premises. The monastery sits empty -and the future of the ktone c) rvh is uncenain. . Garbage bags are stacked inside the church, and it is clear to see it is vacant. - Outside in the cemetery stone monuments crumble. On many the names have been weathered. Some have been buried since 1860. The,iutttte of St. Peter's.is a question mark. -"We haven't made -any -decisions. There arc legal pro terns;" y said Brsnop'Snei ocrtc.� " "Some of the people who provided money to the group that was there,- have put a lien on the properly." According to a January 24, 1990 Times -Advocate article, there was a difference of opinion between the friars and Bishop Sherlock. Apparently the friars refused to sign a document of establishment that would have made the monastery a legal entity in the London diocese. There was no prob- lem- with the actual document they objected to, but some of the articles attached. Article 16 stated that any candidate for ordination must apply only to St. Peter's seminary and if deemed inadmissible, may not apply anywhere else without the prior written permission of the Bishop of London. Father Prezedwiecki was the only ordained friar in the group and his followers came with him from Mich- igan to.Clandeboye in June 1987. He even had a pri- vate audience with Pope John Paul 11. With the help of parishioners, the friars renovated --tiuseimmlvrestered the-sanotuary-and were in --the pro- cess of completing a two-storey addition which was to have been their living quarters. Today as you drive by, you see a historic looking church, a cemetery which isbeing maintained by Our Lady Of Mt. Cannel church and the addition which looks, and is, an unfinished project. "I've had a few people say, 'when are we going to ,get that place cleaned tip?' 'There is.frustntheh on the part of the people in the area. I don't like seeing it dete- riorate," said Bishop Sherlock. But once the case is out of the courts, it appears as though the future of the old church is not a rosy one. "We have no particular plans for it. We recognize now the way it stands, it is an eyesore. We'll either find a way to use it or we'll tear it down. The cemetery will stay intact'`iiie land would never be soil" And what about the possibility of the diocese com- pleting the renovations of the living quarters? "It would never be completed unless there was a use- ful purpose for it and so far no useful purpose has ap- peared," said Bishop Sherlock. Ralph Devlaeminck of Lucan and his family became faithful parishioners and helped . the friars in many ways. He said the church was empty for 11 years be- fore Father Prezedwiecki and the friars moved in. "Tho windows were all broke. There was no heat, they did all the work themselves," said Devlaeminck. He said that the monastery was mostly built through the efforts of Joe Minten. Devlaeminck said the brothers had a very large par- ish when they left and they did many things which brought the acceptance of the parishioners. "1 was born in 1935 and they would do the masses like they -did back then. They would do it in Latin or in English," said Devlaeminck who had a grandchild -bap- tised by the friars. In June 1990,when the friars packed up and left for Connecticut, there were hundreds of well wishers, some from the United States, who came to say good- bye. "The last mass they did, the church was too small. People were standing outside." Devlaeminck does not know why Bishop Sherlock accepted the brothers into his diocese in the first place and after all the community assistance, he wonders why they were asked to leave? And what about the future? As Bishop Sherlock said, that's up to the courts. "The friars would love to come back. We had them "-there lathe wialespand- I took them out to the church," 'said`Develaminck.' While many hold out for the remote possibility of Fa- ther David Prezedwiecki and the Franciscan Friars of Mary Immaculate will return to this tiny country church, -one -thing -is for certain. As long as the monas- tery and church remain unfinished, it is a constant re- minder to those who laboured so hard, that conflicts oc- cur everywhere, even in the church. PRESENT CHURCH 187i free dumping cut CREDITON - As landfill costs continue to soar, Stephen Township is tightening the reins on the use of what little landfill space the munic- ' ipality has left at its site. Last Tuesday, council voted to discontinue its practice of allowing free dumping materials at the land- fill site on compassionate grounds. The ruling, which will come into effect June 30 this year, will mean that property owners affected by tragedies such as house fires, will also have to pay for dumping debris at the landfill site. - "We're going to make a poli ecy that everybody pays," explained township admistratot Larry Brown, adding that not only is , landfill space at the dump dwindling, but the costs of burying such material at the site is considerable. The township is currently begin- ning the process to seek an alterna- tive landfill site and is banking on the county's plan to create a county- wide site before the end of the dec- , ade. Stephen Township also renewed its contract for garbage collection with C.H. Lewis Sanitation, costing 3247,892.72 to run from April I this year to March 31, 1994. Road rebates slashed GODERICH - Due in part to a decrease in the transfer payments from the province to Huron County, urban municipalizes will have to pay more for road mainte- nance. Ina 20-11 vote, it was decided on Thursday that the county would re- duce its contribution to urban roads from 45 to 40 percent. County engineer Dennis Merrell said the province has slashed their grants for roads by over I 1 percent, a 3622,400 decrease. He said in somc counties, thc county responsibility for roads in urban centres, only include the mid- dle seven metres which means the municipalitcs arc responsible for storm sewers, catch basins, etc. "It is possible for the county to end county roads at the limits of villages and towns," said Merrell. Ina brief presented to count jl by eight urban municipalizes including Exeter and Hensall, it was pointed out that when the first county wide reassessment took piece in 1988, rebates paid to the urban municipal- ities were reduced. Two minor accidents EXETER - The Exeter OPP re- port two accidents in their detach- ment's coverage arca , in the past week. • On Wednesday, there was a colli- sion in Huron Park on Columbia Drive between vehicles driven by William Smith of Zurich and Wil- ma Tuck of Exeter. Police say damage was minor. On Thursday, at night in the rain, a car driven by Salaheldin Elreyauy of Grand Bend was struck by an - .other car which had swerved to miss a doer. The other vehicle, however, fled the scene and there were no witnesses to the incident. Damage to Elreyatty's vehicle was minor and there were no injuries. The partly -finished renovations to St. Peter's Church stand exposed to the elements, making the former monastery ar eyesore to passing travellers and to former supporters of the order. Girl hit, town police seek Witnesses of hitand-run EXETER - The Exeter Town Poiice are asking if anyone witnessed a hit and run accident involving a pedestrian last week, to come forward and help the investigation. Police say that last Tuesday afternoon, about 4:05 p.m. a blue, four -door car was turning left from An- drew Street onto Victoria Street when it struck a young girl who was walking. Although police say injuries to the girl were minor, the motorist left thc scene without stopping. Anyone who may have seen the incident is asked to call either the police directly at 235-1235, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-265-1777. Police have also investigated a hit and run at the parking lot last Monday at the apartment building on 176 Sanders St. E. in which an unknown moux- ist struck a parked car and failed to remain et the scene. Police say the vehicle may bear grey paint marks from the collision. Again any witnesses are asked. to call the police. Charges are pending, say police, after a two car accident Friday at the intersection of Huron St. and Edward St. in Exeter between cars driven by Gladys Barden and Marion Triebner, both of Exeter. Town police also issued a 12 -hour suspension and Liquor License Act charges arc pending against a London motorist stopped on Main Street Saturday. Letter to Editor Tribute to Rosemary Scott Dear Editor: Both here in Zurich and in much of the wider community many were stunned to hear of the sudden death of Rosemary Scott on March 1st. Like many others, I found it very hard to believe. But now -that a little time has passed this has come to me from the Scriptures: I (Jesus Christ) tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Tile man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal hie. Whoever serves me must fol- low me; and where 1 am, my ser- vant will also be. My Father will honour the one who serves mc. Attending the memorial service for Rosemary at thc Mennonite. Church, you could .ea,tily sec that the truths Jesus was talking about were lived out in her life. And ,now that his "seed" has died, it Should be our full expectation to sec her hfc multiplied in the lives of others. Perhaps we saw some- thing of that already, with dozens of young people attending the me- morial service, and not a few giv- ing testimonials as to the pro- found influence of Rosemary in their lives. All that was en- hanced by the at- mosphere of the service. Rising above our sense of shock, loss and grief was the real presence of Jesus bringing about something very beautiful -= worship, quiet joy and even celebration. Life very much overcame death, something only God can bring about. Among all the testimonials it was good that one person who spoke up had been a witness to the time when, just a few years ago, Rose- mary surrendered her life to Jesus Christ, letting him bring new life into her. It was also good to hear the young people speak honesty about Rosemary.. With no disrespect at all, but with a warmth of gratitude, they described even with a nicc touch of humor her forthright ways. Clearly everyone agreed that you always knew where you stood with this lady. That trait was obviously admired in her. Picking up on that, I know that if Rosemary were by my side right now she would say something verb close to this; "Alright, it's nice that they said all those good thing, about mc, but they need to knee where it all cane from. Jesus made all the difference in my life. Ile meant everything to mc, and 11 there was anything I really wantai to get across to than, it was that they need to accept him too. Tell them to tum their whole lives over to Jesus right now, just- the way they arc. Tell diem he will accept them and change them.ust as he did me. Tell therm if they don't know how to do that. then for heaven's sake, ask someone who does -- Al or someone else. Tell them not to put if off another day. Life is far too uncertain and the de- cision is far too important. So tell them to smarten up and db it now!'. I'm certain that's just what she'd say, bless her. Thank God for Rosemary and ber kind who lot .their lives wont for Jesus. Thank God that all who truly believe in him will be togeth- er -- soon and forever -- when he Wows again. Sincerely Eugene lox