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Home My WebLink AboutThe Wingham Advance-Times, 1989-02-28, Page 17'1 • $900,000 KISS Agriculture and Food Minister Jack Riddell is kissed by Sheila Richards, a member of the Blyth Festival's board of directors, following announcement of a $900,000 provincial goireginVerit grant for the, festival's expappiof and renovation project. From left: MarioriZoucette, past week* Of the board, Culture and _CoMindhibationsMinlitet4ily Munro who made the ahriodikethent, Mr. Riddell, Mrs. Richards, and Blyth'$' artistic director, Katherine Kaskas. -,-Munro, Riddell ann $900. -000%t rant for BI th ••• uric Th. Blyth Centre for the Arts -was hands& a $900,000 boost for its • building fund Thursday in the form of a provincial government Cultural Facilities Improvement Grant. Announcement of the grant was made by Culture and Com- • -smunications Minister Lily Munro during a special ceremony at the • Blyth Memorial Hali, • The ceremony was also attended by Huron MPP and Agriculture and Food Minister Jack Riddell, and a ',14;. gathering of liocal civic dignitaries and members of the Blyth Festival's , board of directors. The grant, along with a federal grant of $450,000 will be used toward - the centre's $1.8 million expansion and renovation project to Blyth 4 Memorial Hall, home of the ,Blyth Festival. _ Describing the festival as a worthy reciptent of the grant, Mrs. Munro said that ever since it first opened in 1975, the Blyth Centre for the Arts has produced many new Canadian plays, and still .continues to encourage Canadian playwrights through its new play development program. Mr. Riddell told the gathering that Blyth can add one more accom- plishthent to its steadily growing list — that of convincing government and others of the need for funding. "I think Lily would agree with me that there are few groups in Ontario — or Canada for that matter — that do a better and more persistent job McLeod is guest speaker at Liberal annual meeting Ontario Colleges and Universities Minister Lyn McLeod will be the guest speaker at the March 9 annual meeting of the Huron Provincial • LiberalRiding Association. The meeting will be held in the Goderich Township Hall in Holmesville with a reception to begin at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 7. As well as the-. address by Mrs. McLeod, the Meeting will also feature the election of a new executive ad the selection of 15 delegates to the Ontario Liberal Party's anntial Meetirtg its Hamilton March 31 to April 2. Elected to the legislature in the Sept. 10, 1;7 election, Mrs. McLeod recelvedherAroptbUniversity of Manitoba in 1963, her Honors BA in 1984 and her MA in psychology in 1986 from Lakehead University in Thunder Bay. While at Lakehead, she received the dean's medal as the highest ranking graduating student in her •Honors BA program, and the chancellor's medal for being the top - part -time -student. •,As well as being a member of the Lakehead University board of governors, Mrs. McLeod was a Member of the Lakehead Board of Education for 17 years where she served as chakroan for seven one- year terms. •Agriculture and Food Minister Jack Riddell represents the riding at Queen's Park. i.11,0.,0/0,It, of soliciting funding," he said. It was just 68 years ago that Blyth Memorial Hall, built entirely by volunteer donations, was officially opened by the minister of agriculture at that time, Blyth Artistic Director Katherine ,Kaszas said during ThurStlity'S presentation ceremony. Built in 1920 by the joint efforts of the residents of Blyth and the Townships of East Wawanosh, Morris and Hulled, Blyth Memorial (Continued on Page 2B) Turnberryhas surplus for '89 Turnberry Township has recorded a surplus of just over $60,000 for 1988. Auditors Rob Lightfoot and Paul Stitt of Montieth and Montieth, Stratford, attended the second monthly meeting of council to present the financial statement. Mr. Lightfoot had very few comments for council, except to say that - Turnberry "is not in any financial predicament". Their audit fee, which includes two township boards, is $5;345, which represents a modest increase Over the 1 7 audit fee. Council had few comments about the surplus. However, Reeve Brian McBurney did say the surplus will be of use this year in the township, especially since government grants are being cut back. The main factpr in the surplus is a $40,000 supplemtentary subsidy for roads, but there also were savings in general government. Council currently is working on the 1' budget 'P'4 a 1 , • WiP mt"' . moving It to a new rt 0 :e is..the..last •hgh school r n - a t a it who hal* mO _ home principal Of thrsktliti-4, Although a new principal, has not been named, he ,Or she is almost certain to come from the outside as Murray Minter has beens vice. principal at sMadill for not yet. a year. _ A native of the. Londesborough area, Mt: 'Wood was educated there and at Clinton „before attending the OntarictAgrienilturalCollegi, He went Onto work for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food as, an agricultural engineer at Riclgetown. While there Mr. Wood taught two classes and found that he loved teaching so much he went to teachers' college that fall. He and his new bride Marilyn ( they had been married one week came to Wingham in the late summer of 1958. Mr. 'Wood had accepted a position teaching math and science at the Wingharn and District High School and he's been here ever since. The new school had opened in 1954 and by the time Mr. Wood arrived, it had an enrollment of almost 500 students. There were 18 pn staff, compared to .63 today and over 80 during the "baby boom" years `of the late 1960s and early '70s. _Mr. Rail- Was prhicipalstvhen Mr. Wood arrived, to be replaced by Madill0110.104100 Mr. WOO SaYi, he V--*IsflOnitt early by Mr. Madill for '0ad- ministrative role. Mr. Wood was named the schOors first department head in 1960- and became: -a vice , principal in 1967. Mr. Wood and Mr. Ritter were vice principals at the same time when enrollment was especially high. Mr. Ritter was named prin- cipal in 1973 and Mr. Wood moved into the position with Mr. Ritter's retirement in January of 1984. Although he loved teaching, Mr. Wood welcomed the chance to move Star ; 1 authori4ifse' apps . F. E. -Madill Second • tg,wiss0.-A, ry : fit** 11 seen as a leader; • • • Mr. Wood :gtv.0,,..0i;103...tui-'070'!--14‘ community at - 'lotto for .standards at the school.. He s 11100.standarc*ssouphei#,',. the strong support ofs parents and memo* of the community. The student 10anogriss-Aust has a, attendance reco,d, says Mr." of which he isuiproud..„ The school Mr. Woodleaving much different than the one he arrreivsedut.,:daett'isin olf35e8v. eWryithaihnliitsity‘Vwailiths special progranis_ designed to fit all their needs. This is a good trend in education, Mr. Wood says, but he cautions that the average student must not be "lost in the shuffle". The credit system, introduced during the early 1970s, has improved education and lets students focus on areas of special interest. The challenge for Madill's new principal will be to set a course which will take the school into the next centriry. Enrollment at the high school currently runs at just- over 900 students, but Mr. Wood has projections that itwill he over 1,000 by X994;*Itit, increased bilkallit0J**iiLiVit010**While he says that teaching has been his life, Mr; Wood is looking - - forward to basting a bit More:a/nett) -pursue his hobbies, which include whodworking,and photography. He and Mrs. Wood certainly will do some travelling and visiting with their three daughters, Joanne, Janet and Karen and son Doug, <who recently set a Canadian pole vault record. And besides, the high school is just a short walk from the Woods' Summit Drive home, so he may j drop in for a visit from time to time. PRINCIPAL Attila -pia — Ken Wood, principal at the F. E. Madill Secondary School since 1984, is retiring at the end of this school year. Mr. Wood has bean, at the local high school for 31 years. • , 14004 t • .41