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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1998-04-15, Page 4Page 4 Times -Advocate, April 15, 1998 Publisher & Editor: Jim Beckett Business Manager: Don Smith Production Manager: Deb Lord Advertising; Barb Consitt, Chad Eedy New: Kate Monk, Craig Bradford, Brenda Burke, Ross Haugh Production Alma Ballantyne, Mary McMurray, Barb Robertson Brenda Kern, Joyce Weber, Laurel Miner Transportation: AI Hodgert . . Front Otficg & Accountbq; Sue Rollings, Carol Windsor Ruthanne Negrijn, Anita McDonald, Cassie Dalrymple, .Ruth Slaght, cow The Exeter Times Advocate is a member of a family of community newspapers providing news, advertising and information leadership I:I)I'I'ORIAL Publications Mail Registration Number 07511 SUBSCRIPTION RATES; One year rate for Canada subscribers - $35.00 + OST Two year rate for Canada subscribers - $63.00 + OST OTHER RATIO �l /�/� .M AOIAN CO•im,.. OUtslde Canada-ssioz,00 Congratulations to all volunteers olunteers come in many shapes and sizes, all colors and every age, from the little red haired Girl Guide who helps look after the "lost children" booth at the Toronto Exhibi- tion, to the elderly gentleman who pro- vides not only a ride to London for his favorite cancer patient, but also com- panionship and moral support. ' Volunteersinclude hospital auxil- iary members, minor soccer -coaches, Red Cross blood donors, church youth leaders, and the folks who sit through endless board meetings for this organi- zation and that. Volunteers include the busy businessmen who get together to raise funds for sick children, the guy who dashes madly around the arena at every igame selling 50-50 ticketsto sup- port the team, and the Cancer Society daffodil ladies. What do they have in common? At first glance, nothing. But rich or poor, white collar, blue collar, pink collar, busy professional; or semi -retired, they all share a genuine caring for the hu- man race with all its frailities. It's something in the attitude. Ask a volunteer why he or she puts in unpaid hours doing such work, you are likely to hear'a few key phrases such as, "I love doing this, I could never give it Another, even more telling state- ment is, "I get so much more out of my vdlunteer' work than I put into it." Someone once described the differ- ence between paid work and volunteer work as, "I g� to the office every day to earn a living, and I like what I do. But my volunteer work -is something I do for me." People sometimes get the wrong impression about volunteers and volun- teer work. They think because it un- paid work, it is unimportant. They couldn't be more off the mark. Were it not for volunteers, this town would have no minor sports programs. Sick*, and elderly people would suffer. • Churches would clo.se their doors and sit empty except for an hour Sunday morn- ing The smiling older couple who bring your aunt her"meals on wheels", the woman who comes into your son's class once a week and listens to him read, the people who organize various fund rais- ers forneedyfamilies - all would be sit- ting at home. - Unimportant? Nothing could be fur- ther from the truth. Volunteers have been done an injus- tice by our society's tendency to place a dollar value on everything. What about the woman- who chose to -wait until her children were grown up before returning to her career: (paid work)? Asked by the personnel officer what she had been do- ing for the past 20 years, the woman -hung her head and admitted she had been "just.a housewife". She made.no mention of the fact she had chaired the largest community fund raiser for sever- al years running. ''. ;is i' strumental in starting the community's Block Parent organization, and was acknowledged by - everyone from the mayor right on down the line as one of the -community's "movers and shakers". She was not qual- ified to work as a receptionist she was qualified to run the entire company. What about the man who described himself as "retired" despite the fact he more or testi ran his community's federal riding association, was -a church elder; organized the annual senior games in his community and still had timeto drive needy people to medical appointments? These two are not real people, but everyone knows someone like them: It is time we treated them as they deserve to be treated - as extremely important com- • munity resources, to be honored, re- spected, and valued. Next week is volunteer week. Con- gratulations to all volunteers. You are the heart and soul of this community. Reprnue•d from Sau,geei, ('itv News Speak Out The .Times Advocate continues to welcome letters to the editor as a forum for open discussion of local issues, concerns, complaints and kudos. The Times -Advocate reserves the right to edit letters for brevity. Please send your Tetters to P.O. Box 850 Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S6. Sign. your letter with both name and address. 1 - Anonymous letters will not be published. Letters to the Editor A View from Queen's Park By Eric Dowd TORONTO -- Progressive Conservative Pre- mier Mike Harris's entry into the thick of his federal party's leadership race could cost him votes in an election next year. Harris would prefer not to be involved in the contest to succeed Jean Charest because he is down to 33 per cent in polls and the last thing he wants is to antagonize some in his own par- ty. But the premier will be forced to take sides now that a long-time backroomer in Ontario and federal politics, Hugh Segal, says he is con- sidering running and is supported by former premier Bill Davis and other Red Tories. Hams has been coy about Segal's aspirations so far, saying that as premier he will be neutral and he and Segal are friends. But Segal is the antithesis of everything Harris stands for. Segal in various government offices was chief staff political adviser to Davis in the 1970s and 1980s. Davis and Segal were on their party's red or moderate side, priding themselves on having a social conscience and intervening as govern- Published Each Wednesday Morning at 424 Main St., Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S6 by J.W. Eedy Publications Ltd. Telephone 1-519-235-1331 • Fax: 519-235-0766 emall:taesody.com O.S.T. MR105210835 1;?0TOTVE FoR oNTAR105 NEW CHAKiTY CASINO 'NE•pRMED Wti\IDITS;# Missiles and musings By Craig Bradford Attention summer sports fans... we need you The middle of April marks a time of welcome'transition in the Times - Advocate sports world.. - - Not that hockey playoffs aren't exciting, but almost six months of cold feet during 'two hour games despite donning two pairs of heavy wool socks can make you yearn for sunnier pastimes. • Out with hockey. ringette. figure skating (including precision), curl- ing. high school basketball and -vol- leyball and other insidi` pursuits and in with soccer. baseball. rugby, golf, tennis and all the other out- door sports enthusiasts have been itching to play for an entire winter. The transition doesn't happen slowly. though. It's like grinding gears. One• minute you're shooting - an action -packed all , or nothing make .or break hockey game and the next you're enjoying the aroma of freshly cut grass while taking in the first rugby match of the season. The change also marks a turnover in the people i deal with on a day- to-day basis. 'Though some sporting contacts remain on the spend dial all year long because of their in- volvement in both surnrncr and winter sports, most have a busy season and an off-season to re- charge. Though those summer contacts may have not heard a peep out of me in months, they are just as im- portant as the ones I've been bug- ging each week from September to April. Without my summer con- tacts, the day-to-day exploits of iravclling hardball. fasthall. soccer and other teams we fol- low here at the -T -A wouldn't make .it in the paper. Without those coaches or parents filling out the -special T -A • game- sheets. little Johnny's or Jenny's name wouldn't appcar.in black and white when they hi, their firs( triple• or earn a shutout. Your buddy's in- credible hole, -en -one on the links would only he a tale you share over refreshments at the 19th hole. With- out that gameshcet or phone call, the T -A wouldn't he able to cover that tournament you've worked, for weeks to organiiC.. I know you sports buffs are busy enough juggling jobs, family life and your sports passions. Taking the time to fill out gamcsheets or phone in results can he a pain. But those;extra few minutes means the difference between having the pleasure of seeing your teammates -names and mugs in print and. letting your and your team- mates efforts on and off the .field go un- noticed. So while you sports organizers arc hanging up your skates and dusting off ourclubs and gloves. remember your local newspaper. Without you there is no coverage of spring. sum- mer. fall or winter sports. Give me a call or drop into the T- A offices to pick up those game- .. sheets. i'11 he expecting to hear from you soon. - Without you there is no coverage of spring, summer, fall or winter sports. ment when needed. This meant every time someone raised a concern, Davis and company opened a new branch of government or other- wise threw taxpayers' money at it. Harris has cut billions of dollars off the deficit and sternly reproached earlier governments which blithely ran up debt, and among those with the biggest deficits was the government of Davis advised by Segal. Segal helped adventures like taking over and running a resort and investing in an oil company (Segal wanted the province to set up gas stations complete with trillium emblems all over Onta- rio) which wasted hundreds of millions of dol- lars and Harris has said were disastrous. • When Harris is downsizing, he is essentially dismantling what Davis, prompted by advisers like Segal, built, rather than anything created by the more recent Liberal and New Democrat gov- ernments. Davis's Tories shaped policies according to polls and when Harris ran for leader, he com- plained that the party in government had lis- tened too much to polls and backroom advisers Harris will feel he has an obligation and forgot principles and fell deservedly to third place. There was no doubt he was refer- ring to Davis and particularly Segal • When Harris ran for leader, Segal and most Davis Red Tories worked for his opponent, Dianne Cunningham, whose cry was that Harris was so far to the right that voters would never accept him. Harris aides said "Segal and those guys said Mike is too far right and we stomped on them." Harris owes Segal nothing. Harris will be wary of the company Segal keeps, including Davis, for whom he has no love. Harris not long ago said his hero is George Drew, the premier in the 1940s who made drastic changes, and more recently lik- ened himself to the statesmanlike John Robarts, also pre -Davis. He has not said that he admires Davis. Segal is being promoted also by another Red Tory and former adviser to Davis, Dalton Camp, who uses his newspaper column to call Harris a disaster, bully, purveyor of dangerous nonsense and creator of human wreckage. Harris will worry that his federal party might adopt views Segal had when he was in govern- ment -- that it should intervene to solve every- thing -- and Ontario voters might feel he shares them. Harris will not want a federal leader who says, as Segal does, that he will never merge with Reform. Hams had a working arrange- ment which merged Tory and Reform votes to win in 1995 and says that unless the two parties unite federally the Liberals will be in power forever. Nine years as an MPP before becoming lead- er, Harris will marvel like many that Segal, who has never been elected and whose only business experience has been in public relations selling information he learned,in government, would consider himself qualified to lead a po- litical party. But whether Segal runs or not, Red Tories like him who quarrel with Harris have shown they are intent on taking over his federal party. Harris will feel he has an obligation, quietly or otherwise, to prevent them.'