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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1985-10-02, Page 1• rt. NO. -40120T1-I YEAR WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1985 , 160 CENTS • Patrick Hill, an employee with the Sherlock -Manning Piano Fac- tory in Clinton for the past 10 years, carefully puts the pegs and str- ings on to one of the hand -made pianos. The factory recently receiv- ed some good news in the form of a $100,000 loan from Ontario. Development Corporation. The money will he used to purchase new equipment for the manufacturing firm which is feeling a resurgence due to an increase in orders for this year. (Alan Rivett photo) Bright future for piano factory CLINTON - A $100,000 loan from the On- tario Development Corporation recently granted to the Draper Brothers and Reid Piano Factory will go. a long way in becom- ing more competitive in the American Market, says the company's General Manager Andrew Braid. The loan, announced by the government agency last week, will be used to replace worn out equipment with new state -of -the - art equipment which will eventually lower production costs in order to stay com- petitive, says Braid. , An estimated 52 jobs will be created in the factory over the next few years, but Braid says it's not a direct result. of the loan. An in- crease in orders for this year is the reason cited for the creation of more jobs - Braid estimates the production of pianos will increase 50 pet cent .by the end of the year and should double in, the future. 'This translates into increasing.production frq,m two tothree pianos per day to an expected five pianos per day by the end of the year. The piano factory, which manufactures Sherlock -Manning pianos exclusively, is onc. of • only two in existance in Canada. It has... survived despite some tough times in chiding a shut -down in 1979 until early 1981 when it was re -opened. The company originally. resulted from a merger of the Doherty Piano and Organ Company and Sherlock -Manning pianos of London in 1869. The piano factory in London was closed in the '20s and the operation moved to Clinton. William Heitzman bought the company from Caryl Draper and merged it with Heintzman Limited and moved the produc- tion to Hanover in 1967. In 1980, the Hanover company went into receivership and Caryl Draper's two sons Murray and Robert, along with the late Joseph Reid, bought the company and mov- ed it back to Clinton. In late 1984, Draper Brothers and ,Reid Limited', was sold to Toronto businessman Garth Turpin. Longtime Clintondoctor dies Dr. Walter A. Oakes of Owen Sound, a well known medical practitioner in Clinton from 1933 to 1970, died at University Hospital, London on September 30. He was 88. A graduate of the University of Toronto Medical Class Dr. Oakes began his medical career in 1926, doing residency work •at Toronto General Hospital for three years, and at the Toronto Hospital for . Sick Children and a New York hospital for children, for a year each. Dr: akes started his first practice in Toronto in 1930, but at the urging of another Toronto doctor, he came to Clinton in 1933. He was the first doctor to introduce the technique of hip pinning at the Clinton Public Hospital and he demonstrated this procedure at St. ,Joseph's Hospital in Lon- don. Along with his medical practice, Dr. Oakes served on the Clinton Public Hospital Board of Directors for many years. He retired in 1970. In 1973 Dr. Oakes and his wife moved from Clinton to their Florida winter home and their summer residence in the' Muskokas, and later to Owen Sound where they resided for the past 10 years. Dr. Oakes is survived by his wife, the former ,Louise Rogers. Also surviving are two children, W. Harris Oakes of Alice, Texas and David4A. Oakes of Toronto,and nine grandchildren. He was predeceased by one sister and three brothers. Funeral services were held this morning, October 2 at the Breckenridge -Ashcroft Funeral Home, Owen Sound. Interment took place at the Greenwood Cemetery. Valerie (left) and Joanne are both trying for the cheerleading squad. Valerie has spina bifada. Here, Valeria is operated by 4 Maureen Penn, a resource teacher and Joanne is handled by Sheila Clark of Brookside Publie School. (phot by Stephanie Levesque) C.T.tII`%TON - iwci here has turned around a decision) 0110W woolen's erotic exercise classes td be tat Int den Town Hall Auditoriui a. however, reprieve has only been aUowed on a temporary basis. In response tp an appeal made by par- ticipants of the exercise class, council agreed to allow resumption of the program at the auditorium, but only: until a more suitable location is found. Council urged tb t serious attempts must be made to find a better location, Classes at the auditorium were ter- minated at the end of the spring session because employees reported that problems with noise levels disrupted work at the municipal offices. Council also voiced con- cern that the rhythmic jumping involved in the exercise program could cause structural damage to the newly renovated town hall. Despite attempts to secure another loca- tion to hold the classes, none have been found. The afternoon exercise program differs from others in that it offers babysitting ser- viees for mothers who participate. The town hall auditorium provided an ideal' location, with the main hall being used for the classes and a smaller meeting room utilized for the babysitting service. Councillor Gord Gerrits reported to coun- cil that other locations have been in- vestigated, but none are suitable. The arena auditorium for instance, could adequately handle the exercise class, but no additional room is available for the babysitting ser- vice. Some councillors questioned the need for the babysitting service. Others suggested that the program would be better facilitated at night. Councillor Gerrits pointed out that the 20 participants who have ,,aken.part in the pro- gram have done so because of the babysit- ting service and because of the afternoon time slot. "That's the program's appeal and that's what these women are looking for," he noted. A delegation of class participants met with council on September 16 to further discuss the problem. The member's noted' that they paid taxes on the restoration ofthe town hall and they should have .use of the budding. The women asitad, why the . P ,, •>; P. • cise odes were' cancelled id i1 let ' programs, such as gymnastics and ballet* classes.I They further pointed out 'haat the hour- long class involved approximately 20 minutes of vigorous, exercise that may in- volve jumping and bouncing. ' Clerk Cam Proctor pointed out that the ar- chiteet had said that the auditorium was not designed for gymnasium use. He advised that vigorous movement in unison should not be allowed. Clerk Proctor pointed out that the auditorium is designed to Withstand weight,, such as 200 people dancing, but can- ' not accommodate a steady vigorous motion. Delegation members asked why these. uses weren't considered when renovations took place last year. Councillor Ross Carter noted, "We never considered such a use when the renovations were done. We thought of it (town hall auditorium) more as an entertainment cen- tre, a hall." Councillor Gerrits suggested that it was better to use the auditorium for exercise classes, than let it sit vacant. "We need people using the building," he stressed. "We have people wanting to use it and we won't allow them." "They'reonly requesting the facility for two hours a week." Councillor Jim Hunter suggested that the auditorium floor had taken the "same poun- ding for years with no signs of structural damage." "I look at the chandelier. If it's not mov- ing, the walls aren't," he said. The clerk noted that light bulbs are replaced regularly in the ground floor of- fices. Council agreed to allow the program to resume at the town hall auditorium, but they specified that attempts be made to secure a more suitable location. Councillor Gerrits said that such searches had been made in the past and had been fruitless. Church 'halls and school gvm- nasiums are•used during the da v, but he said that checks could be made again. He assured council, "If there was another place I'm sure they would use it. The delega- tion that came here came as a last resort." Shirley Weary named rind pal at Bluewater By Stephanie Levesque The chief negotiator for the Huron County secondary school teachers, Shirley Weary, has been named principal at the Bluewater Centre for young offenders effective Oct. 1. Huron County Board of Education Direc- tor Robert Allan announced last week that Weary was successful, over six' other ap- plicants for the position. Weary is currently employed half-time by the school board at Goderich District Col- legiate Institute. She is also a half-time .federation officer for District 45 of the On- tario , Secondary School Teachers Federa- tion (OSSTF 1 which is Huron County. Allan said this new principalship is equal to those of the other five secondary school principals in Huron. In early September; the•Huron Board of Education gave approval to an agreement with the Ministry of Corrections which • operates the Bluewater Centre. The provin- cial government will pay the salaries of the education staff; although they are chosen by the board. Allan.did say the Bluewater Ceii- tre were in on the principal hiring. • There is now one teacher already at the '""school, Boris` Mitlosavic of .Winghatn. 'Die next stop, says Allan is to hire a librarian,a guidance head, and one teacher each for academic responsibilities . and technical s' responsibilities. Allan praised Weary's appointment say- ing she is well positioned to take the task and her experience with the teacher's federation will assist her with organized . groups at the Bluewater Centre. Huron pork producers attempt to organize CLINTON. - Pork farmers in Huron Coun- ty are attempting to organize a Huron Coun- ty Pork Producers network. On September 25 some 35 pork producers met in Clinton to discuss the feasibility of organizing -such a group. According to one of the organizers, Ed Bezaire of Seaforth, the group would be developed as a safeguard, to primarily look after supply and management con- cerns. "We don't want to go against the Ontario Pork Producers' Marketing Board, we want to do what the producers want, ,but we have to prepare a plan," he stated. "To produce marketing, is nonsense." Guest speakers at the meeting included Middlesex Pork Producer President Martin Welch, Gerte Blake of Grey County, Mark McAualy of Bruce County and Art Houghton of Bruce County. Discussion at the meeting centred on the program for supply and management, the quota system for domestic consumption, open market for export and no price for quota. Organizers of, the meeting will be holding meetings in the future, which they hope, will lead to township meetings. A date has not hogs indiscriminately, with no plan of yet been set for the next meeting. Kids are. back By Stephanie Levesque The Kids On The Block are back in Huron County and bringing with them conversa- tions between handicapped and "regular" children. The "kids" are arm -manipulated puppets in groups of two. Handled by teachers, scripts are provided which have regular Conversations between the two puppets. "The object is for children to feel comfor- table with these special children," says Ar- nold Mathers, superintendent of program with the Huron County board of education. Last week, a workshop for about 45 teachers was held at the school board office. There, the teachers learned how to handle the puppets and were shown scripts that ac- company each pair of dolls. One pair Of puppets is Mark and Melody. Mark has cerebral palsy. Outfitted with a helmet to protect his head and sitting in a wheelchair, he explains to Melody that he can do many things that other children do. Then there is Valerie and Joanne. Both are trying out for positions on the cheerleading squad, only Valerie in crut- ches and leg braces, has spina bifada. She shows Joanne that she does have cheers of her own. Ellen Jane and Brenda make up another combo. Ellen Jane is mentally retarded but that doesn't mean she can't function in society. "Last June, there were 98 children In our schools who in legal terms are defined as handicapped," says Paul Carroll, superintendent of special education. He said the numbers have increased since the first day of school and justify the Kids on the Block puppet program. The idea is. to work on the- attitudes of the regular t t .children. The program was originally conceived in the United States about seven years ago. A recently published survey, says Carroll, in- dicates that at the end of five years of using the program, children felt more comfor- table in their dealings with handicapped children. The school board has purchased outright eight puppets in conjunction with the South Huron and District Association for the Men- tally Handicapped. The puppets run at $600 to $800 each says Mathers. Former student services co-ordinator Sheila Clarke, also said the puppets are cor- rect in detail. Shoes and clothing sized to fit the puppets, are what children wear. Mark's wheelchair is a miniature form of a regular - sized' wheelchair and a blind puppet has a broil watch. The puppets were borrowed by the school , board in the past and made enough of an im- pact to justify going out and buying them Mathers said as many teachers as Oki- • ble will learn how to use the puppets. Now, over 60 know how to use them. The puppets, accompanied by scripts will be sent out to the schools from the board of-. fice via the courier service. There is room for the public to learn more about the handicapped children says Mathers. "We'd be pleased if service clubs, women's institutes or church groups want us to come out with the puppets," he says.