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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1994-05-11, Page 1SEIP'S valu-mart 4 & 83 Exeter 235-0262 Wholesale Club Packs No Membership required Ilia Sizes = Sig SavinES SEIP'S vale -mart 4 & 83 Exeter 235-0262 PtrattleOts ( eT WO Watering System $39.99 each Serving South Huron Save $10.00 r SUBSCRIBE! ' If you aren't subscribing to The ITimes -Advocate, you're missing out. t Use the coupon below and subscribe today! 1 Name: I Address City 1 Prov. ■ Postal Code ' SUBSCRIPTION RATE$: Canada Within 40 miles - (65 km) addressed to non letter carner addresses $30.00 plus $2.10 G.S.T. IOutside 40 miles - (65 km) or any tetter carner address $60.00 + $4.20 G.S T. 111 Outside Canada -599.00 C. $8e 40 P.1.90 1 North Middlesex & Ldlllhton Cheakr deal sought with doctors Emergency ;may close 1 1 USE YOUR CREDIT CARD ' OOODODO❑ 1 DOLIDOCILJO Card No. 1 ' Expiry Date ' ❑ Visa ❑ Master Card ' ❑ Cheque enclosed ' Return to; TIMES ADVOCATE L424 Main St. Exeter, Ont. Npi 1S6J- on um ati ilii s: Inside Budget MPP applauds no tax increases page 2 Look now Summer jobs may be scarce page 5 Radar It's not a golf ball page 10 No pads Rugby taking hold at SHDHS Second front Another wallet stolen at high school EXETER - Another wallet has been stolen at South Huron District High School. Friday, a teacher at the school re- ported to the OPP that a wallet went missing from an office adjoin- ing a classroom. This is the third wallet to be stolen at the school in the past few weeks. The OPP are also investigating the report of a break-in at a cottage at the Poplar Beach subdivision in Hay Township Thursday. Stolen were a television, VCR, and a CD player. An Exeter resident on Redford Drive has reported the Saturday theft of three cement lawn orna- ment dwarves. Two bicycles have been recov- ered by the OPP detachment and arc waiting to be claimed by their owners. Last Monday, the OPP picked up a blue and white girl's bi- cycle in the Hensall area, and on Saturday a man's I2 -speed moun- tain bike was located on Sanders Street in Exeter. Anyone missing these bicycles is to contact the OPP detachment. The OPP also report attending to a few domestic disputes over the weekend. One dispute resulted in the laying of an assault charge, and another resulted in a breach of pro- bation charge. T -A adds real estate section A new Times -Advocate section debuts this week, featuring homes offered for sale through local real - tors. The Home Locator is inserted into 5,000 copies of the newspaper, plus an additional 2,000 copies are available free at selected pickup points. T -A publisher Jim Beckett said he is hopeful that regular weekly publication of the Home Locator will be maintained year-round. "Initial support from realtors hip been excellent," said Beckett. By Fred Groves T -A staff EXETER - The emergency room at the South Huron District Hospi- tal will be closing Monday, unless a new deal can be struck with local doctors. Tuesday morning, hospital ad- ministrator Don Currell told the Times -Advocate that if the hospital and local physicians cannot come .to an agreement by Thursday, the deal reached between the two groups back in October, will come to an end on Sunday. "I have to alert the public that there may not be an emergency room on Monday," said Currell. "We've sent an invitation for all of them [local doctors] to meet with us on Thursday," he added. South Huron Hospital chief of staff Dr. Linda Steele coiuld4ibt be reached for comment. In a press release sent out Tues- day morning, of which the local doctors received a copy, it stated that the annual cost of the contract with the doctors to keep the emer- gency room going has escalated from $200,000 to $250,000. Currell said the figure has jumped approximately $50,000 due to the volume in the emergency room. "A new expenditure of over $200,000 per year is not sustainable along with other funding cutbacks," said the release. The hospital was informed last week it would receive 1.5 percent less from the province towards this year's budget. South Huron's budget does not in- clude funds for paying the local doctors to staff the emergency room, claims the hospital's board of directors. Also Tuesday, Currell showed copies of a letter being sent to the Minister of Health Ruth Grier. It states that the Huron -Perth Liaison Committee, representing the seven hospitals in the two counties, is still waiting for the ministry to respond to the emergency room problem. "It's way beyond our ability to solve. It's ridiculous that we write letters and get no response," said Currel I. If the South Huron emergency room does close, people who re- quire emergency medical assistance should call their own doctor or visit an open emergency room. The emergency room at South Huron will, however, continue to be open on weekends from 6 p.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Monday since this period is covered by doctors from London. The hospital says the most recent offer it has made to the doctors is similar to that negotiated by neigh- bouring hospitals and would pro- vide compensation in addition to OHIP fees for physicians who are on-call. Breakin nets thieves $16,000 in jewellery EXETER - A smash and grab style robbery netted a group of thieves about $16,000 in jewellery early Thursday morning in Exet- er. Two thieves broke through the front door of Anstett Jewellers at 3:30 a.m. Thursday, and made off with a quantity of gold chains, and rings, including South Huron District High School rings. A resident near the store witnessed the thieves leave the area in a car. While OPP officers arrived on the scene within a minute or two, the culprits were gone. There have been no arrests so far, hut the Exeter OPP are looking for any information from the public that could lead to an arrest. Paul Holmes at the detachment said the London Police are investi- gating a similar series of jewellery store robberies in the city, and it's quite possible the gang is expanding its range to nearby towns. "We're hoping that something develops," said Holmes, but urged local residents to watch for anyone trying to sell a quantity of jewel- lery privately. "The high school rings can only be sold locally," said Holmes. Balloons to launch air show By Fred Groves T -A staff GRAND BEND - The count- down has begun. In just 10 days, hot air balloons will rise high above the village of Grand Bend kicking off what is ex- pected to be one of the best air shows in Ontario this summer. Saturday, the Grand Bend Inter- national Air Show committee met at the Legion to iron out some last minute glitches and finalize their flight plan. The 10 balloons are scheduled to lift off from the Oakwood Driving Range on May 21 and 22 with launch times tentatively (weather permitting) set for 6 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. May 28 and 29 beginning both days at 2:30 p.m., spectators will see an exciting air show which will include a D -Day tribute, a WW 1 dogfight, formation parades and a few special surprises. One disappointment announced Saturday was that the B-17 bomber would not be at the air show. Lauren Lee who is in charge of the air acts said that all B -17's in the United States are having wing corrosion problems and they arc under heavy maintenance. •'Pknse see 100,000, page two. Since 1873 Wednesday, May 11, 1994 (84C + 6C G.S.T.) 90 cents Unlicensed babysitters fear fines up to $2,000 a day Child care crackdown dividing community By Catherine O'Brien T -A staff EXETER - The recent crackdown on individuals providing child care in and around Exeter is not over yet as the ministry of community and social services continues to receive complaints. "The number of calls we have received recently from the Exeter area have been unusually high," said Karen McEwing-McConnell, a program super- visor with the ministry, who investigates such calls. In the last two weeks, the London branch of the ministry investigated four com- plaints in this area - one in Credi- ton and three in Exeter. And there may be more to come. "We have received additional information that there may be oth- er individuals in the community that need to be investigated," McEwing-McConnell said. Under the Day Nurseries Act the maximum num- ber of children a person can care for in their home at any given time without a licence is five. "This ex- cludes your own children," McEwing-McConnell said. If child care givers wanted to licence their home in order to take in more than five children, this would be difficult to do because of regulations such as zoning and public health. The sudden crackdown is causing concern for many parents and child care providers. "I have spoken to individuals whn are concerned that we are doing this," McEwing-McConnell said. "They don't quite understand that the calls are coming from their community and that's the only reason we have been out there visiting people," she said. "We only respond to complaints from the commu- nity. We don't go out knocking on doors looking for people." she added. "Whoever is making the calls isn't thinking of the consequences," said Mary Ann Quinn -Cooper, a "We on to compla the c concerned parent who organized an information meeting last Monday night for parents affected by the crackdown. "We seem to he turning on ourselves," she said. At least sixteen parents met at her home last week to discuss what they could do about the situation. Since then, she has received a steady stream of phone calls from individuals who want to get in- volved and find solutions to the problem. Right now, no other services exist in the Exeter area for school-age children so many parents rely on individual child care workers to watch their chil- dren at lunch and for a few hours after school. Many of these providers are concerned they may be targeted next and hit with fines of up to $2,000 a day. Quinn -Cooper lost her sitter of more than nine years because of ly respond ints from ommunity." the scare. McEwing-McConnell said she is receiving phone calls from parents whose sitters are cutting back on the number of children they watch even though she hasn't been to their home to investigate them. As well, McEwing-McConnell said some people are misinformed that sitters are being closed down the same day they arc investigated. "In the Exeter arca all providers were given over two weeks to reduce their numbers," she said. "The bottom line is that parents should have the right to choose their own sitter regardless of the number of children, Quinn -Cooper said. "Our chil- dren need some place to go." For Quinn -Cooper the next step is to organize a committee to investigate the long term solution and find out exactly what the community needs in the way of child care. She and others will he meeting briefly with the Exeter Public School parent committee this month to set up this new committee. "The first priority will be to take care of the kids," she said. Singles group to meet again Are the guys just shy? LXL l LK - A new singles group in Exeter is already planning its second meeting, and is looking for new members to join its ranks. The group first met on April 15, and brought over 20 people to dis- cuss whether there is a need for a singles -only club for the town's un- married, divorced, or widowed pop- ulation. Kevin Ferguson, one of those who attended the first meeting, ad- mits that most of those there were women. However, several men called, expressing interest in the prospect of such a group, but were perhaps --loo chicken to show up, - jokes Ferguson. A brainstorming session dis- cussed the potential for holding sin- gles dances in Exeter, card playing evenings, bus trips to baseball games, or other events. "We don't know if the dance thing will go, because of being close to London. Godcrich, and Wingham," said Ferguson. Apparently, many single adults in Exeter regularly travel to singles dances in those communities. Most of those who attended, said Ferguson, ranged in age from their 30s to early 50s, which was what the original organizers anticipated. Although funded by local church- es, Ferguson said the group has no religious connection. Its only aim is to bring single people in the area together. "It went really well," he said. "But it would be nice to see a few more guys out." The next meeting is this Thurs- day, in the South Huron District High School library, starting at 7:30 p.m. Springtiilne blues St. Bonlface School In Zurich held Its apdng concert last Wednesday evening. Called "Story Book Garden", the concert featured the performances of the three kindergarten classes. The students put on a happy face for the show, but a few had a hard time maintaining their enthusiasm. Justin VanHevel (centre) might be wishing he Is outside in the springtime weather Be he sits in the front row between classmates Rosha Westelaken (left) and Tyler Payne (right). A