HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1975-06-12, Page 13Itbe
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31Dec.41 0987654
Public Library,
52 Montreal St,,
Godericht., Ont. N7.A. 2G4
A dream come true
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SINAL -'STAR ' THURSDAY, JUNE 1 2, 1975 THIRD.SEGTION
New ODCI student council executive
Goderich :and District Collegiate Institute elected a new
executive for the 1975-76- school year last week. It took three
ballots before the final selection -was made. Gerry O'Brien will
co-ordinate the social activities as social convenor, Chris
Wildgen a Grade 13 student was selected as president out of five.
candidates and Mike Doorly, also a Grade 13 student is the new
vice-president: (staff'photo)
'Old joke 'doesn't fit Rhona Hadden
This
BY JEFF. SEDDON
When Rhona • Hadden shuts
down her telecommunications
computer and locks her office
door at the end of June it will be
Mier last aria the coniptiter"s last -
working day . in Goderich.
Rhona is retiring from
C nadiart National Telecom-
munications and the CN is
closing its Goderich office.
The closing marks the end of
well over a decade of
telecommunications service to'
residents and businesses of
Goderich that was once a going
concern. The office was very
lady keeps secrets
busy several years ago but use
of the service in the past year
or two has been dwindling
drastically.
"bused to be busyall day and
some nights," said Rhona.
"But now I can *read dr knit and
still handle the work easily;
The -decline of work at the CN,
East Street depot has- begin
frustrating for the manager.
She prides herself on her
knowledge of the telecom-
municatians network and
received satisfaction from
putting her knowledge to work.
Unlike . most managers she
understands the" system's
switchboard in her office and
can even do some minor
repairs.
"T watched the, technicians
install the board 13 years ago,"
she recalled. "They explained
each piece' to me and I feel T
`know the board inside out.
The board is about 10 foot
square and is a mass of 'plugs,
dials, wires and fuses .that to
the layman would look like an
electricians' nightmare. Rhona
casually qualifies her
statement by explaining how
she che.cks it for problems that
enable the chief dispatcher in
Stratford . to pinpoint the
problem for his technicians.
"They send„ me a 'message'
saying there is a problem
somewhere and I check mf/
equipment," she explained. "If
everything is all right they tAl.
me to patch a message through
to bypass. a station and . if
everything works they know
that station is broken down."
Her qualifications have been
an asset she has been proud of
during her car-eer., Most office
managers do not know as Much
'about their equipment as
Rhona does and she sheepishly
says, "I'm not supposed to
know anything about that
board."
With love
BY JEFF SEDDON
Two little Fergus girls moved
out of their parents' house last
week and moved' into a storey
and a half cottage of their own
thanks to the skill and love of
their grandfather, Jim Skeoch,
of Goderich.
The house is eight foot
square, six foot high .on the
ground floor and about three
foot do the second storey, has
two dormer windows, a patio,
window boxes full of flowers, a
weather vane, a shingled roof
and is brightly painted yellow
and brown.
A -spring project for grampa,
Mr. Skeoch saw a picture of the
playhouse on the cover of a
handyman's magazine and
decided his grandchildren
should have one. With noplans
to,work from but `all the
deermination needed to see the
prosect through, 'Mr.. Skeodh
began construction around May
1 and last week loaded the
house onto his boat trailer and
delivered it.
All of the credit for the house
belongs to Mr, Skeoch but he
did not do it all himself. His
construction crew consisted of
his wife Ruth and his close
friend . Bill Schaefer. `Mr.
Schaefer,..according to his wife,
worked on the project for fun
but got involved enough to
push himself to get his own
work around the house and
office done so he could go over
and work on the playhouse.'
Mrs, Skeoch, according to
her husband, had loads of
enthusiasm but had trouble
putting it to use. He jokingly
says the hardest thing about
building Che- house was' keeping
his wife on the job,
The iokes and good times that
(continued on page 5B)
it's
her job
Her 14 years of service have
rmad'e her witness to things that
may not excite many people but
will be recorded by someone
someday. When she began her
service with CN she worked at
their office near The Square.
About a year after that she was
moved to the East Street
station and into the centre of
the action.
"I'm the only woman in the
history of this station thatever
worked here," she pointed out.
"Even my holiday reliefer was
a man."
Her office was built in the
centre of the station right in the
middle of the goings on. The
remainder of the work crew
was male and at the time, were
not excited about Rhona
working with them-: She
dutifully . operated her .com-
puter while the . men moved,
freight, made up trains and
processed passengers.
"They generally regarded
women as big mouths," smiled
Rhona. "They found out dif-
ferently and have been won-
derful to work with all. the time
I've been here.'
Not all the messages in her
work days have been strictly
(continued on page 5B)
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Rhona Hadden has been working her computer at the CN telgcommunications office for 14
years and says she could write a book about some of,the messages people send by telegram.
(staff -photo)
The huge switchboard in Rhona Hadden'g telecommunications office is a plass of plugs and
wires that, to Rhona's expert eye are simple to understand and operate. (staff photo)
a
Brenda Bremner
Youth and the law
student in Goderich
The Goderich Police
Department will once again
employ the services, of a
university student luring the,
,summer months under te"
government funded program
"Youth and the Law.
Brenda Bremner of R.R. 2
Bluevale, begs},n work with'the
Goderich Police Department
June 2 and will perform . a
variety of duties with the force
Brenda is a'niversity of
Guelph• student who will be
entering her third year of
fani'ily studies.
The program is spoasored by
the Ontario Police C'omnission
and serves the dual purpose of
pro‘ iding summer john and
giving young -persons an insight
into police work.
Approximately 150 students are
employed in the program
across n e province.
Brenda is the second student
to he employed by the depar-
tment under the program'
which is entirely funded by both
the federal and provincial
government. The program is
just one, of many offered by the
province in its Experience 75"
programda.
Bren's job will involve
filing reports, some clerical
work, doing traffic surveys on
The Square and getting better
insight into the .profession by
attending court sessions and •
riding with an on duty
policeman in the cruiser.
Although Brenda has been on
the .job for only a few weeks she
was somewhat surprised at ,the
amount of paperwork .nd
reports ,,that a small police
station could incur.
Brenda eventually hopes to
teach a family studies program
in high school and is confident
that her work with the
department will' be an in-
valuable experience, She
lauded, the efforts of the
program which she claimed
should "make me aware and
see the other side of police
work." She will be with the
department until the end of.
August.
Although this is only the
second year that the Goderich-
Police Department has been
involved with the program
Police Chief P. D. King has
seen its operation for a nua.iber
ofear's in -'Oakville and seeing
its worth .implemented it last
year in Godci ich.
The successful applicant is
usually placed with a depar-
tment in the same county hut
an effort is made oto . place a
student with a ' department
other than in_ his dr her "oWfl
community.- -
40'