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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1998-04-22, Page 2Page 2 Times -Advocate, April 22, 1998 CQMMUNITY !Phoney money and break-ins urge better fraud awareness Regional wrap up Salmonella illness cases linked to Middlesex and London MIDDLESEX COUNTY/ LONDON - Four eases of sal- monella bacteria illnesses in the coverage area of the Middlesex - London Health Unit have been linked to snack food products re- cently recalled by the J.M. Schneider Company. According to the Parkhill Ga- zette, two other cases of the same strain were being investi- gated but links with the Schnei- der products had not been estab- lished. Middlesex/London Health Unit inspectors removed at least 1,000 units of suspect Lunch - mate products from stores. Until the investigation to iden- tify the source of the problem is concluded, Schneiders is with- drawing its entire Lunchmatc product line to ensure public safety and confidence in the firm's products. AN accident claims life of Blyth teen BLYTH - A 13 -year-old Blyth youth was killed in an ATV ac- cident on April '12. The North Huron Citizen re- ports Tyler Wilson of . King Street was riding a three -wheel ATV behind the Blyth arena late Easter Sunday afternoon when he fell off and was critically in- jured. Blyth firefighters responded at the scene and Tyler was taken to Clinton Public Hospital where he died. Police are investigating the cause of the accident in which Tyler was wearing a hel- met. History of Clinton to be painted in murals CLINTON - Town history will show up on walls of two busi- nesses this year as the Economic Development Committee contin- ues its murals program. reports' thc Clinton News -Record. Finishing touches will be put on a mural adorning the wall of the Triangle Discount store. Also, Corrie's car wash will re- ceive a mural. Plans for ,a third mural will decorate the large side wall of Shoreline Healthco inc., to re- semble a collage of three photos including the Wearwell hosiery mill, the Clinton Car and the de- livery of farm implements to the town's trading centre. The committee seeks photo- graphs to help artists with their work. Thc group is considering murals of the local pipe band and history of horse racing in Clinton. Although'a photo exists of the farm implement trading in town, it docs not clearly show the im- plements; the committee would like to view clearer photos. Arca residents with photos of these subjects or of farm imple- ments are encouraged to take them to Jane Groves of Groves TV and Appliances on, Huron Street. The committee has a budget of $9,000 for murals and will in- crease the funds when they as- sist at the Clinton Community Players production of Let's Mur- der Marsha, playing from April 23 to 25. Those who attend the play will be supporting both the Clinton Arts and Culture Committee and the murals program. • Hay wants new fire agreement EXETER - Hay Township wants a new agreement with the Exeter and Area Fire Board. Under the current agreement, Hay is a full member of the hoard and contributes to capital costs. At the April Exeter and Area Fire Board meeting, township rep Fred Campbell indicated Hay would be willing to pay a lump sum similar to what it pays Grand Bend plus a charge for its own calls but no contribution to capital items. Hay is willing to pay $4,000 annually plus a charge for its own calls. The arca of Hay Township covered by the Exeter department is 8.4 square miles, an area two and one-half miles north and west of Exeter and is worth -$9 million. Campbell said this area could he re- duced in size by half. Exeter council is concerned thc withdrawal of Hay Township will erode the department and is particularly concerned about capital costs. Fire Chief John Morgan has done an estimate on the costs of fire service on an hourly basis to determine what the hoard should charge for accidents or fires when billing insurance companies or others who do not contribute to the hoard's operating costs. The rates were approved at the April fire hoard meeting. The first hour of fire fighting is $1,100, additional hours are $950 and each additional half hour if $475. This rate could be charged to Hay Township if they withdraw from the board. The hoard will examine the agreements for the Exeter and Grand Bend fire hoards to reach a decision. Thc Township is al:A, served by Hensall, Zurich and Grand Bend lire departments. Arena in telephone business • Continued from front page makes will remain in the arca. "it's like an automobile," ex- plained Dickins. "We can transfer the ownership." He would also like to involve mi- nor hockey in the deal "Down the road," he said, "it's unlimited what we could do with this, once it takes off." "We're not going to push this down, anyone's throat," he assured, adding if the arena could become self-sustaining, the tax base would no longer he r'esponsihle for arena repairs. "There's a lot of arenas that will be closing due to government cut- backs," said Rathwcll. "We don't want Zurich to get to that point...if people thought about, 'What if the arena wasn't thcrc'...Hensall was the first arena to give us their OK.". The parks hoard is holding a pub- lic meeting at the arena on April 26 at 2 p.m. to inform people about the roof fundraiser and to answer ques- tions about the ACN deal. "This •opportunity is only -going to be here for a short time and then the market will he saturated," said Dickins. Differing opinions at school forum + ' Continued from front page and out of classroom. "To me,.everything that room is a partof the classroom," she said. Principals, vice -principals; sec- retaries, heat and lighting are all ar- eas that might/be cut because they are considered non -classroom fund- ing, said Kidder. High school reform is also hap- pening too fast, she said. De- veloping curriculum has taken up to five years in the past. But Kidder said the high school program is be- ing restructured from 1,000 courses to 219 coursers in eight months. "What's the rush? Is it worth us- ing today's Grade 7 students as guinea pigs?" said Kidder. Sharon Wolfe, of Mitchell, said she attended the district -wide meet- ing looking for information on the changes in education and their Im- pact on the Avon -Maitland. "You don't always want to be an- gry about what you hear. 'You want to understand it," said the member of the Mitchell District High School parent council. During her speech, Kidder said she was impressed with the turnout of parent from Avon -Maitland. "Nothing like this happens in To- ronto," she said. John Patterson, associate director of education, said district -wide par- ent council meetings arc intended to inform parent council members about education issues and their roles. A previous meeting was held last fall in Listowel before the two boards amalgamated. "So this is kind of a first," he said. Cheese products may contain salmonella TORONTO - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has- an- nounced a recall of food products which may be related to an out- break of Salmonella entertidis. This is a type of food -borne ill- ness which causes diarrhea, fever and cramping. The exact source and cause of the outbreak is still unclear but cheese appears more and more to be the common food. Last Wednesday, Parmalat Canada announced a voluntary recall of three brands of mild light/Jite cheddar cheese prod- ucts, which may contain sal- monella. The company is ad- vising consumers not to eat these products. This precautionary action by Parmalat relates to the recent re- call of Lunchmates' products, where cheese was identified as one of the ingredients being in- vestigated. The products announced for re- call last week were processed in a facility and within the time- frame of the products being in- vestigated in the Lunchmatc re- call. This recall is part of an ex- tensive investigation to de- termine the cause of a current outbreak of salmonellosis in Can- ada. The Company emphasized that this is a precautionary measure and that it has received no con- sumer complaints related to these products. Salmonellosis may cause flu- like symptoms and is a potential- ly life-threatening illness. , Young children, the elderly. and people with weakened im- mune 'systems arc particularly at , risk. The company 'is withdrawing all of these products from the re- tail trade and urges consumers to check their homes for the fol- lowing product codes: • Mild Lite Cheddar (225 gr) Co -Op Brand Best Before Date: 98JL 13 U.P.C. Code: 5731601956 • Mild Light Cheddar (225 gr) Black Diamond Brand Best Before Date: 98AU02, 98SE02, 98AU 10, 98JL20, U.P.C. 6820084553 • Mild Light Cheddar (225 gr) Our Best Brand Best Before Date: 98JL30, 98AU24 U.P.C. 6192545527 Consumers in possession of any of the above mentioned prod- ucts should return them to their grocery store for a refund. The cheese may not look or smell spoiled. A consumer hotline has been established by calling 1-800-996- 7119. Local bank receives requests from businesses to host fraud and forgery awareness workshop By Brenda Burke T -A Reporter EXETER - From fake money surfacing in Grand Bend to a rash of break-ins in Exeter and all the fraudulent credit cards, had cheques and telemarketing scams in-between, it's time for fraud awareness. in response to ''numerous re- quests" from business customers, the Bank of Montreal in Exeter is hosting a fraud/forgery workshop on -April 28 at 7 p.m. for businesses in Exeter, Grand Bend, Lucan, Zu- rich and Hensall. "There's a need at this time of year because we're a tourist area," explained Gord Sproule, thc hank's senior manager of customer ser- vice. "This could take off. it should almost become an annual event." Annette Maver, a customer ser vice representative at the hank, said the session is being offered "be- cause there (are) more and more frauds and forgeries going on." A representative from the bank's Toronto security department will bring workshop par- ticipants up to date on fraudulent credit cards,. forged currency, tele- marketing fraud, NSF (non -sufficient funds) cheques and related top- ics. As well, the OPP will he on hand to dis- cuss burglar-proofing businesses. "One of our hest friends is the police force," said Sproule. "i think mer- chants should know police in the arca." At an Exeter Business Associa- tion meeting earlier this month, members discussed concerns about recent break-ins along Main Street. They expressed interest in the fraud/forgery awareness workshop and wondered about steps involved in refusing questionable currency. "Things that are happening here are happening. else- where," said Sproule, who spoke to Precious Blood students last week about bank- ing when the topic of debit card fraud surfaced. When the bank held a fraud/ forgery workshop four years ago "on a whim," nearly 40 people turned out. Space for the upcoming workshop has doubled .and according to Maver, over half of those reservations are already full. "There's a need at this time of year because we're a tourist area...11 should almost become an annual event." Got any fraud or forgery questions? Annette Maver and Gord Sproule of the Bank of Mon- treal in Exeter express the need for a fraud/forgery workshop for the business community. Such a workshop will be held at the Exeter branch on April 28 at 7 p.m. Junior kindergarten gets second look by Michele Greene Special to the Times Advocate CLINTON - The Avon -Maitland District School Board will take a second look at its decision to extend junior kindergarten to Perth County schools. Last Tuesday. night in Clinton. trustees voted 5-4 to continue offering the program in Huron County but not add it to Perth schools, although the Ministry of Education will provide $2.9 mil- lion to fully fund it. , But it will he hack on the April 28 meeting at the written request of Trustee Vicki Culbert. "I wasn't ready to let it rest," said Trustee Culbert. She said she would have pre- ferred deferring the motion at the last meeting. Trustee Culbert said she is hoping to see more informa- tion on junior kindergarten before voting again on the subject. During the meeting last Tuesday night. Trustees Wendy Anderson and Ray Ford said they saw the funding from the province as an opportunity to reinstate juhior kin- dergarten in Perth County schools. Some schools had the program but it was cut before it was fully implemented in all schools to reduce costs. . "Now we have an opportunity to have some funding to get the pro- gram hack in the schools and ut things back the way they wet ," said Trustee Ford. Putting the program back in place would provide equity for students across the district, said Trustee Anderson. The former Huron County Board of Education maintained the program in its schools and it continues in Huron County but not in Perth County. "We've endured some inequities A hut we don't have to anymore." she said. Other trustees wanted to wait and see what the new Early Learning Opportunities program is about. The • new program is geared to senior kin- dergarten to Grade 3 students. The Ministry of Education and Training would provide $2.9 million in fund- ing for it. But. the board would have to decide between the two programs. "I have reservations that we are throwing away a program to help kids." said Chairperson Abby Armstrong. A range of program options are yet to be announced but may include remedial reading or lower class size initiatives. Chairperson Armstrong said it may help more kids than the junior kinder- garten program. "For the kids who can be successful but just need a little help in the begin- ning," she said. Susan Burke. superintendent, described the new program as "a phantom program" because there are few details available now. "Implementing by September is questionable," she said. Trustee Anderson suggested the board implement junior kindergarten while it investigates the new. Early Learning Opportunities program. "We can't 'offer [junior kindergar- ten) then pull it," said Trustee Leslie Wood. If it is implemented, parent Evelyn Grose, of the Listowel Eastdale Public School Parent Council, sug- gested the junior kindergarten and senior kindergarten student be in sepa- rate classes for the first year. "Younger kids need more attention and the older ones get lost," she said. "Separating the age groups would give each class the opportunity of being special and a part of a new group." said Grose. The War Amps THE LEGACY CONTINUES Cliff Chadderton created the CHAMP Program to provide child amputees with financial assistance for artificial limbs, regional seminars, and more. Now, graduates of CHAMP are carrying on The War Amps tradition of amputees helping amputees. For more Information about CHAMP and other War Amps programs, contact: The War Amps National Headquarters 2e27 Riverside Drive Ottawa, Ontario K1V 0C4 Ibi.: (613) 7313821(Ottawa) or E•ZEE ACCESS: : 1-600.2503030 Fax: 1-600-218-8968 Internet: tttp://www.waramps.ca cr,.,lreer• nepnere„ number: 02ee031 oe