HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1982-06-30, Page 1n:
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134 YEAR --20
GODERICH, ONTARIO, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 30, 1982
50 CENTS PER COPY
Will wheelsDanAitanto western goal
Dan Alt'an shifted gingerly in the wheelchair, the
demands of the gruelling task visibly etched on his
face. The sun, rain and fierce head winds have left
their marks on his bronzed, muscular torso but have
failed to chip away at his indomitable spirit.
Dan Altan is a man of purpose and courage. And
that sense of purpose has sent him on a cross-country
journey in his wheelchair to raise money for disabled
athletes and prove they are every bit as capable, if
not more so, than able athletes.
The polio victim began his odyssey in Halifax, Nova
Scotia June 1 where he ceremoniously dipped his
wheelchair in the chilly waters of the Atlantic Ocean
with a firm goal of reaching Vancouver in September.
The dream will take him on a 4,000 mile trek across
Canada and as he passed through Goderich Sunday it
marked the completion of a demanding 1,500 miles.
While the weather and hills have taxed his body to
the limit, Dan's spirit is in remarkable shape as he
faces another 2,5Q0 before reaching his goal.
"I was ready to expec ing and I am in goad
psychological shape, h11. "The rain hasn't been
'bad but :the headwinds have made the going dif-
ficult.,, );
In preparation. for his wheel across the country,
Dan trained extensively for months, wheeling up to 25
miles a day and competing in. wheelchair sports. He
also had to gear up psychologically and spent time
thinking of the wind. rain and cold that would be an
integral part of the journey.
With Canadian memories fresh of the ideals and
heroic exploits of . Terry Fox, Dan is finding trouble
escaping the comparison, although he believes it is an
unfair one.
"The idea did not .come from Mr: Fox and we are
not trying to capitalize on the run of Mr. Fox'although
he was a great inspiration to me," he said. "I had the
idea three and one half years ago and mentioned it to.
another athlete when we were in Sault Ste. Marie for
the provincial games. I popped the question of going
cross country and the. idea stuck with me ever since.'•
Dan is covering up to 50 miles a day in his quest to
reach the west coast and while Canadians
everywhere, are offering encouragement and moral
support, the trip has not been a great financial suc-
cess. "Morally the people have been super by honking
horns and clapping hands but financially we are not
rolling yet. I had a good reception in London, my
hometown," he said.
Dan is accompanied on the trip by a van with
Shawn Lynch of Montreal and Toronto photographer
Ashley Lubin,, who handle finances. But, basically;.
Dan is alone in his quest to travel across Canada and
bring recognition for disabled athletes and funds for
disabled sporting organizations.
"My body is in good shape and my hands, arms and
shoulders are holding out," he said. "Psychologically
I'm in good shape but the hours on the road are long
and I think a lot."
He faced many obstacles early in his journey in the
form of steep hills and strong head winds in New
Brunswick. He struggled against those winds for
hours and said he was on the road for10 or 40"hours
straight at one stretch. But his entrance into towns
makes up for the lonliness on the road. .
"When I wheel into a town the problems diminish,"
• he said. "We haven't had a police escort all the time
but there have been no . problems ,with traffic. The
people are courteous."
While his travels have not been as well publicized
as he would have liked, in several places, other
disabled persons have escorted him through town.
"They can appreciate' the hardships of what .I'm
doing," he said.
Dan is. trying to raisemoney for the Canadian
• Federation of Sports Organizations for the Disabled
and donations can be made at any Canada ,Trust
branch in the Dan Can Cross account. Donations can
also be mailed to the above sports organization at 333
River Road, Ottawa.
' This week, Dan Altan will be in Tobermory to catch
the ferry. He plans to wheel into the Pacific Ocean on
September 10.
New 1.11 ensiv are• at
�u .
highlights u.•esfear
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BY JOANNE BUCHANAN hospital with the Ontario Minister of Health,. Dennis
Reports read at the Alexandra Marine and General Timbrell in attendance. By transferring this unit
Hospital Board's recent annual meeting • reflected a fronrthe Bluewater Centre, the hospital has been able
successful year highlighted by the building of a" new to amalgamate the hospital staff within One physical
Intensive Care Unit (ICU), after a successful fund- facility. Services such as occupational therapy and
raising campaign. social work are now available to all patients served
The buildingof a new ICU was chosen as a 75th . by the hospital.
anniversaryproject for the hospital and in September While Timbrell was in Goderich, the hospital board
a mammoth fund-raising campaign was launched in met with him to discuss three services which it felt
the community to raise $250,000, half the proposed necessary to improve health care within the com-
construction cost for the project. To date, a total of munity. As a result, the minister granted ten ad -
$483,000 has been raised in cash and pledges from that ''ditional nursing, home beds for the community,
campaign" andthe surplus funds will allow the
hospital board to purchase additional equipment for
the ICU.
With the funding in place, construction has begun
and the project will be completed and in use within a
few months. It will provide the hospital with a new
four bed ICU complete with all the most modern
•monitoring equipment; an additional four chronic
care beds within the hospital; an expanded
physiotherapy department including much needed
new equipment; a new paediatrics area; a realign-
ment of space within the hospital which will provide
for expanded day care surgery and recovery area;
and additional support equipment for the laboratory,
S eq es
three Seaforth
area newspapers
Signal -Star Publishing Limited''tvf. {yederfch •h
purchased publishing rights to three publications in
Huron County: the Huron Expositor in.Seafortb, The
Brussels Post and The Blyth Standard. SSP President
R. G. Shrier made the announcement this week.
It will bring the number of community newspapers
owned by SSP to eight. They include The Goderich
Signal -Star, The Clinton. Neva -Record, The Kin-
cardine News, The' Lucknow: Sentinel and The Mit-
chell Advocate.
Other SSP publications in this part of Ontario in-
clude Focus, a hi -Weekly newsmagazine circulated in
Huron and Perth Counties, and Leisure Life, a tourist
magazine which circulates throughout Southwestern
Ontario twice each year.
The Bradford Witness and York Region Topic
Newsmagazine are partially owned and managed by
SSP.
In addition to the printing plant operation at
Goderich, SSP is a partial owner of Webman, an
offset printing plant in Guelph.
Mr. Shrier stated that the economic reality of
continuing to publish The Blyth Standard and The
Brussels Post independently was no longer viable.
He explained, however, these two papers will not
lose their identity. The Brussels Post will be
amalgamated into the Huron Expositor; The Blyth
Standard into the Clinton News -Record.
The Post and The Standard will continue to serve
their communities with the usual high standards, Mr.
Sprier said.
SSP Vice -President Jocelyn A.. Shrier has been
named publisher of The Huron Expositor.
Susan White, a former owner of The Expositor and
daughter of Publisher -Owner A. Y. McLean, will
remain as editor.
H. W. (Herb)Turkheim, a long-time resident of
Huron County, has been named advertising manager.
Kim is second
in championship .
Kim Fritzley, 15 -year-old daughter of Bill and
Donna Fritzley of Goderich, was first runner-up in
the Canadian Finals for Highland Dancing on Sunday
in Vancouver, B.C.
On Saturday Kim won the British Columbia Open
Highland Dancing. Championship which included
over 500 dancing competitors from across Canada
and the United States, including the ,winners and
runners-up from each province who had qualified for
the Canadian Championship. -
In Sunday's competition, only the two dancers
qualifying from each province were eligible to dance.
Kim was only one point away from winning the
Canadair Championship lathe15'years•of age and
under category with two firsts, a third and a fourth
for 19 points. The winner had one first, two seconds
and a third for 20 points.
promised that chronic home care would be available
in Huron County bythe _end .of.the 1982 calendar year
and urged the board to .make a submlssion for
psychogeriatric care to be provided within the
community. '
In addition to the relocation of the psychiatric unit,
the Ministry of Health granted the board extra fun-
ding in 198142 for the establishment of another
psychiati is out-patient clinic in Clinton to com-
plement the Goderich and Wingham operations. This
unit has been operating for severalmonths in a,
facility rented from the Clinton Public Hospital and
serves the Goderich, Clinton and Seaforth areas of
the count
_._._a^rav &other departments. ' ..�.— - Besides -.the_- financial- success of the ICU fund -
In February of this year, an official opening was raising campaign, the year 1981-12 ended with the
held for the newly expanded psychiatric unit at the • Turn to page 3 •
,
Dan Alton of London passed through Goderich
Sunday as he wheels his way west to 'Vancouver.
The polio victim is wheeling across Canada to raise
money for Canadian sports organizations for the
disabled. He has wheeled 1,500 miles since he left
Halifax June 1 and expects to cover the remaining
2,500 miles to Vancouver by September 10.(Photo by
Dave Sykes)
Average elementary teacher
in Huron now earns $31,800
The 1982-83 collective agreement for Huron elemen-
tary school teachers. represents an' average 11 per
cent salary increase.
The agreement was ratified by the 360 teachers on
June 24 and the board ratified the gagreerhent on
Monday, June 28. The only changes made from the
1981-82 agreement were on the teachers' salary 'grid
and an additional $5,000 for professional development
funds. The fund now increases to $65,000. •
The average elementary school teacher in Huron
has a university degree and eight years of teaching.
exnermnce and under the new agreement shat earn,_
$31,800. This is up from the' f981-82 average salary of
$27,690.
Teachers with minimum qualifications will have
their salary increased from $13,900 to $15,460, while
the most qualified teacher with 10 years of teaching
experience will have their salary increased from
$36,000 to $40,050.
While principals, vice -principals, and co-ordinators
will receive a basic salary increase, there will be no
increase in their responsibility allowance. Principals
receive an allowance of $8,000 in addition to their
teaching salary. Vice -principals responsibility
allowance ranges from $3,200 to $3,900. Co-ordinators
_receiyc ja allowance of _$4,400, and principals of
schools for the trainable -mentally ' a receive
an allowance of $4,590.
•
Tirespunctured
of seven car, .: -. M .:.- :
There were 11 incidents of wilful damage in town •
during the week. Over the weekend, the washroom
doors at St. Christopher's Beach and an outside light
at GDCI were damaged. Also, tires on seven cars
were punctured outside an apartment building on
Bennett Street.
Police received three complaints about noisy
porties and four other complaints regarding minor
disturbances.
• Eight thefts were reported. 'These included four
truck tires and five bicycles (four of them have since
been recovered).
There was also one assault causing bodily harm
and one other criminal code offence.
Police made four arrests, laid two highway traffic
act charges and issued nine warnings and 15 by-law
charges; for overnight parking. They also in,
vestigated three minor accidents. There were no
injuries involved.
INSIDE THE
S GNAL-STAR
There was plentyof activity for everyone in Goderlch on the
weekend as the Canada Week festivities unfolded in several
locations. MP Murray Cardiff was one of several, politicians
and dignitaries who took part in civic ceremonies in Court
House Park, Sunday included the planting of a tree in honor
of the Canadian Constitution. Hundreds of people enjoyed
the civic ceremony and remained on The Square to enjoy a
fine parade.(Photo by Dave Sykes)
Canada Day
Goderich celebrated Canada Day with parades and
other events during the weekend. Dave Sykes cap-
tured some of the entertainment on film. The pictures
appear on page 2 of the first section.
Squash Club
The Goderich Squash Club has been formed and
club officials are confident that the sport will attract
many members. For more information on the club
turn to the front pageof the Recreation section.
Hospital Board
Alexandra Marine and General Hospital is in need
of $9000 to operate its ambulance service. Joanne
Buchanan has the story and other hospital, board
news on Page 5 of the first section.
A