HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1978-11-02, Page 3,a.
People in Pro
by Shelley McPhee
How much wood does a woodchuck
chuck? Well, Mr. Woodchuck, also
known as Alex Shevchuk has chucked
enough wooden toys to set up a business
in Bayfield, "The Old Same Place."
Here he sells his toys and "neat stuff".
Alex, a 27 -year-old Toronto native
originally started out studying to be an
architect at the University of Toronto.
He left school and ended up in Winnipeg
and there with five other people got a
LIP grant from the government. With
this they made wooden toys to give day
care centres, nurseries and hospitals
for children's use.
"I just thought of doing this one day.
I have no formal training I just took
shop classes as an option in high
ah school," Alex explained.
"I'll stick with it for a few years
anyway. I enjoy working for myself. I
keep my own hours and make my own
decisions."
Earlier this year, Alex moved to
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Employees...
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Under the ownership of Heintzman
Limitted during the past 11 years, the
Sherlock -Manning plants specialized in
the manufacture of modern upright
pianos, making about 800 instruments a
year. Although it was the smallest
piano manufacturing company in
Canada it produced a high quality
product.
Throughout its 109 year history, the
Clinton piano factory has endured
many changes and difficulties.
However the business remained
steadfast and has always rebounded to
meet its former quality of standards.
If these past experiences are a fixed
trait of Clinton's oldest industry, then
the company may take the
amalgamation in its stride and within i
few weeks the former employees will
have picked up the leftover pieces and
have a new business in operation..
CLINTON NEWS -RECORD, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2. 1978—PAGE 3
le: Mr. Woo�ch,ucl� Z 40
toys
Bayfield and put Mr. Woodchuck into
business in a house just off Main Street.
"I like to live in the country. I was
tired of the cities and I liked this area
so much," he said about his move.
Alex has easily adapted to the way of
life in the small village and has no
desire at the present time to move back
to the city. "Everyone has the same
understanding in Bayfield, they don't
want to see anything ruined."
Mr. Woodchuck creates his toys in a
shop, back of the store. Using small
pieces of wood he makes a variety of
toys ranging from $2 to $20 in price.
His creations are made entirely of
wood. They have no nails or screws.
Only glue and dowels.
"I overbuild the toys in a sense. I
make them for day care use. They get
thrown around."
He tries to use a variety of woods,
from cedar, redwood to pine. "I like to
work in some color and nice things like
knots in the wood to spice them up."
Each toy is covered in an oil finish to
bring out the color and the grain and
then waterproofed and protected with a
verathane finish. He claims that un-
finished toys may be unsanitary since
they could pick up food stains and other
particles.
"Plastics have their place too, but
there's a place for wood. You don't
have to go through a tot to get it. Wood
is a nice thing to touch, feel and look
at."
A distinguishing trait in Mr.
Woodchucks work is the rounded
corners and moving parts, like wheels
and propellers. ---�-'"
"Kids like to be imaginative. Moving
parts, blocks that can be taken apart,
shapes, colors and textures help this,"
he claims.
Mr. Woodchuck watches to see how
children react to his toys. He keeps the
shelves in his store at a low level so
young browsers are free to pick up and
try some of his airplanes, trucks,
blocks, Arc cars and an assortment of
other toys.
He has even found that his toys can
serve as dual purpose instrumpits, for
parents and kids. The arc car forlin-
stance, a half -circle with wheels, also
makes good back massagers he has
accidentally discovered.
Along with preparing for the
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Christmas 4season in the store, Mr..
Woodchuck is also busy doing custom
work. As well, he is presently working
on a catalogue and plans to sell some of
his work to other stores, locally and kit
Toronto.
"I'd like to keep the business here, so
I'm not going to go hog wild on the
other," he said.
Mr. Woodchuck is also trying to
control another facet of his business
that has gone hog wild. A number of
orders have arrived and are still
arriving for him to make large wooden
initials.
Undoubtedly he will get more orders
and sell more toys and "neat stuff" as
he makes himself known around the
country. At the end of November Mr.
Woodchuck will be setting up a display
at the University of Guelph. He has had
a booth at the Owen Sound Folk
Fetival and he is hoping to get a spot
Ott the Mariposa Folk Festival in
Toronto next year.
"It's just nice to be there," he
remembered, from the days when he
had x booth set up at the Winnipeg
Summer Folk Festival.
"I've got some dreams," he ad-
mitted. "I'd like to expand and get a
few more people involved. But it's up in
the air right now ."
After the Christmas, rush he also
hopes to renovate his business and
living quarters in the store which he
rents.
In the meantime, Mr. Woodchuck is
chucking about as many toys as
a woodchuck could chuck.
County grant keeps Homemakers going another year
BY JEFF SEDDON
Huron County Council agreed Friday
to pick up a $5,100 tab to keep a county
homemaker service operating for
families in the county in need of
domestic assistance because of illness,
old age or handicaps. The service has
been operating for almost a year under
a Canada Works grant but to continue
operating the service must be self-
supporting by January 1, 1979 and
needs county . help to meet that ob-
jective.
Jean Young, administrator of the
service, appealed to council Friday
explaining that the service is $5,099
away from being self supporting with
the clients it now serves. She said the
budget for the homemaker service has
been drawn up for 1979 and after ex-
penses is that much short of paying for
itself, She said the service needed
assurance that the funds would be
made available to plan operation in the
coming year adding that any fund
raising held in 1979 would earn funds
that could be used for clients that
qualify for assistance by the
Alex Shevchuk makes his living with toys. Also known as Mr. Woodchuck, he
makes wooden toys at his Bayfield home and store the Old Same Place. (News -
Record photo)
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NOW
FAMILY & CHILDREN'S SERVICES
Of Huron County (Children's Aid Society)
Requests your support for the annual
CHRISTMAS
BUREAU
CHRISTMAS IS COMING!!!!!
F.A.C.$. are planning for the needs of families & children in Huron
County. pietist, support this annual community project with your
'410tlrsrt,t find gifts.
the Agency is planning to spend '9,000 --a11 from private ddnations.
INCOME tAX worm for all financial donations. Registration No.
09114192-09-93. •
FAMILY & CHILDREN'S SERVICES
44,4toucliffitteititAtt t oDERiOi1 OW. 1,17A 1W3
homemakers but are being turned
away because of a shortage of money.
Young told council that the reaction
to the homemakers service when it
began operation proved that there was
a need for the service in Huron County.
She said homemaker needs in the
county were going unanswered and
that homemakers were unemployed.
The administrator said she and Betty
Cardno, nursing administrator for the
county health .unit, applied for start up
funds from Canada Works a year ago
and began to organize a homemaker
service. She said the service was
designed to co-ordinate a homemaking
service for the elderly, chronically ill,
disabled, handicapped and for single
parent families with children providing
full-time, part-time, overnight and live
in homemaking service.
The Canada Works grant enabled the
homemaking service to establish itself
and plans were made to make the
agency self-supporting selling its
service on a fee for service basis and
seeking support from community
service clubs and municipal govern-
ments in the county.
Young said the fee for service
enables the agency to sell its services
to Children's Aid, the cancer society
and to priyate individuals. She said the
fees are established on an ability to pay
basis meaning that a client's income is
determined and based on that income
the fee they will be charged is deter-
mined.
She told council that the
homemaking service has been in-
strumental in allowing many people in
the county to leave institutions and
return to their homes to live with the
assistance of a homemaker. She said
the cost to taxpayers is dramatically
less if a service is offered in the home
rather than in an institution such as a
hospital or senior citizens home.
She explained that clients in the past
year had purchased $71,135 worth of
services from the homemaker agency
and that if those people had been in
nursing homes the cost would have
been $102,755 and if they had been in
hospital it would have totalled $564,487.
"The difference in tax dollars saved
is $596,107," she said. "As you can see
we are not only a vital employment
agency throughout Huron County but
an economical member of the whole
health service team."
Young said the service has 71 people
on staff and has sold 10,229 hours of
service to 1.00 different private clients.
She said the rate charged health and
social agencies is $4.20 in a town and
$4.60 for out of town clients. She added
that live in and overnight rates differ
according to qualifications of the
worker and the work required by the
client.
She told council that 14 percent of the
population of Huron County ,is over 65
and that very few, of those people need
to be in institutions. She said govern-
ment and private concerns are strongly
suggesting that home based services be
established to help people of all
I've been to a lot of concerts. I've
`rocked and rolled to the aggressive
sounds of "The Who", I've related to
the moving lyrics of "John Prine"
and "Gordon Lightfoot". I've en-
joyed the talent of "`Harry
Belafonte" and tried to develop
some culture through the sounds of
the classical guitarist "Liona Boyd"
and the grace of the "National
Ballet": I've enjoyed the harmony of
"The Hollies" the voice of Neil
Diamond and the instrumentals of
Genesis.
I've thoroughly enjoyed all these
sometimes costly performances for
the professionalism and their ex-
cellent quality. But for all the times I
have been spoiled with the big, big
league concerts, I still enjoy the
small stuff too.
Granted, local shows don't have
the superior touches, the spec-
tacular lighting or the super sound
equipment, but little league concerts
have a special quality all of their
own.
Area variety nights are sparked
vith warmth and happiness. Mom
and dad, a dozen aunts and uncles
along with all the neighbors along
the concession eagerly and proudly
watch the performers stumble onto
the stage and with nervous con-
fidence, get the microphone working
again, cue the pianist and begin
their carefully arranged number.
Unlike the thousands, upon
thousands of people who cram into
the Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto,
the public school auditorium, the
church or the hall, has a personal
intimate feeling amongst the
maximum of a few hundred people
who enjoy a night out.
For a couple of bucks that usually
go to some worthy cause, nothing
can beat the real, unspoiled pleasure
of a Grade 3 class singing a
Christmas carol; or a bit of a girl
struggling to keep the oversized
accordion on her lap as she makes
her first public performance playing
"The Beer Barrel Polka" ; the
elderly couple favoring the audience
with duet numbers of their favorite
hymns; or the young ballet class
performing their rendition of "Swan
Lake".
We Give Garmsnts
"Speetar Cant
Got expert dry cleaning .and
pressing et reasonable rates.
How's the time to get all your
winter clothing ready...and, all
the drapes in your helm, too.
We now offer
PROFESSIONAL
SUEDE Se LEATHER
CLEANING
with the new "srter"
cleaning process
CLINTON
DRY CLEANIRS
ISSEcN ST: 41.2.7064
OATH AGINCYOMw011114.1 C40TMMiti
economic backgrounds remain in their
home and out of costly facilities such as
hospitals. She pointed out that some of
the direct benefits of the homemaker
agency is that it permits single parent
families to stay together freeing the
parent to go out to work and enabling
the children to continue their schooling.
It eliminates - the- psychological
problems of people about to enter in-
stitutions and frees needed hospital
beds for the acutely ill and is a source
of employment for thousands of
educationally disadvantaged men and
women.
Paul Steckle, Stanley township
deputy -reeve, said he was surprised
senior levels of government were not
giving this type of service more con-
sideration. Ht said the "tax savings
ere staggering and if they were in-
cative of fact government should
s w more interest in this type of
se vice rather than institutions that
were so costly."
betty Cardno advised council that
consideration was being given
homemaker agencies to expand them.
She said governments were concerned
about ,possible abuse of the service on a
provincial basis and wanted to tighten
Ftp adrninistration of it before im-
plementing any programs.
Cardno explained that the
homemaking agency provides only 80
hours of service using government
funds and then the client receiving the
service must pay for any additional
time. She said one of the concerns of
government was that doctors may
recommend that a patient receive
homemaker services rather than have
that patient placed , in an institution.
She said at present the doctors'
recommendation may mean the ser-
vice would be paid for by government
and that type of possibility had to be
removed before government would
sanction the service.
Seaforth to join radio dispatch
After a serious debate
the Seaforth Council
decided to take part in the
countywide police radio
system. However they
want a say in how it is
operated.
The Huron. Expositor
reported that Seaforth
was the last of the five
towns participating in the
system to give approval
for the purchase.
Seaforth's part of the
share of equipment to be
purchased by General
Electric at a cost of
$99,829.54 would be
$4,242.06 based on a per
capita rate.
Deputy Reeve William
Dale stated, "I would like
to know about the ad-
ministration and the
costs."
The Mayor suggested
that Councillor Irwin
Johnston should go back
to county committee and
get some points worked
out and have an ad-
ministration set-up
worked out and a budget
drawn up.
Wingham: few elections
The Wingham
Advance -Times reported
that voters in town will be
going to the polls this
month but there won't be
much for thein to decide.
The only races on.in.the
municipal elections are
for the position of deputy
reelre and school board
seats.
Lloyd Gilroy, a
salesman and former
manager of the Canadian
Tire Store in Wingham is r
challenging incumbent
Harold W.oild for the
deputy reeve's seat.
There is a four way race
for the two seats on the
county board of
education. Both in- •
cumbents,- . Jack
Alexander of Wingham
and Murray. Mulvey of
Howick Township are •
running, as are Rev. John
Swan and Bert Morin also
from Wingham.
M favourite thin@s.
his season The Raintree presents an
imaginative collection of beautiful gift
suggestions.
Interesting and unusual examples of
quality and design awareness, make this
our most treasured showing. Each item has
been chosen to reflect our new country am-
bience, and to satisfy a desire for luxury.
Visit us soon and share in the excitement
The Raintree radiates this festive season.
Come discover our magic.
THE RAINTREE
1l)RNITUM.II(,HTIN(,,L( \h1 ( I\1ti
One Twenty Eight Albert, Clinton 482 1871
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VOTE FOR
HARVEY HAMMOND
for Tuckersinitb Township Council
Harvey Hammond stimik ter—
* RURAL LAND DEVELOPMENT
* ANIMAL CONTROL
* COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT
* NO TAX INCREASES
* LOCAL PROBLEMS SOLVED BY LOCAL PEOPLE
Put a wrr'karr on council
tO work for you!
0
ere •