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Zurich Citizens News, 1976-03-17, Page 4Page 4 - Citizens News, March 17176 "No Sir, 1 Can't Accept The Statement That You Are 5 Yrs Old And Under 50 Lbs! Do i* care? Do we care about our farming com- munity? Many farmers have expressed feelings of increasing isolation from their urban cousins. Many feel misunderstood and even ignored. Even worse, many people don't seem to care about the farmers problems. When you consider that every farmer knows that an Ontario family farm not only feeds itself today but 50 other people ,as well, you can understand why an atmos- phere of distrust and suspicion leaves them :ompletely mystified. Why do these misunderstandings exist? the most important reasons are spiralling inflation and plain misinformation. Everybody has complained about grocery bills. Food prices in the past few years have risen dramatically and people assume that k ;he farmer is the beneficiary of this trend. Not so! For 1976 farmers' cash receipts may be up 3 per cent over 1975, yet real income could be 10 per cent less because of ever rising operating costs. In 1975, farmers have 2.7 per cent Iess money in their pockets than in 1974. An Ontario family today spends only 19 per cent of income on food as contrasted to a recom- mended 25 per cent share of income some 20 years ago. 'Tory° Gregg A familiar voice at many fall fairs and other events in Zurich and across western Ontario "Tory" Gregg passed away in London on Saturday at the age of seventy. His main occupation during his long life in the arca was as a salesman for Molson 's Brewery but he was continuously busy announcing at fairs, horse races and other social events. An avid sports fan, Mr. Gregg was a former president of• the Ontario Hockey League and was the founding president of the Western Ontario Athletic Assoc- iation. Mr. Gregg at one time worked as a sports announcer and even in recent years was heard and recognized easily doing a radio connrcrcial for farm supplies. In response to these circumstances the federal government established the Food Prices Review Board in 1973 to sort out the causes for high food costs. This group, chaired by Beryl Plumptre, managed to get out some of the story to the consumer. They documented some of the inefficien(:ies that exist between the farm gate and the kitchen table. But as so often happens, the whole story has not yet been properly told. In its zeal to champion the interests of consumers, the Board began searching out villains to explain the high costs of food. The target became the producer marketing boards --creatures of both provincial and federal governments. The problem area of the marketing board system was the Canadian Egg Marketing Agency and its inefficiencies became the argument against all other commodity boards. The provincial government doesn't agree and Agriculture and Food Minister Newman has outlined Ontario's response. In a recent address for Farmers' Night at the Brampton Board of Trade, Mr. Newman argued that workers and businessmen have their organizations to bargain for them and to act as spokesmen for their viewpoints. Farmers have the same right. Zurich Mennonite CLAYTON KUEPFER, PASTOR SUNDAY, MARCH 21 9:45 a.m.-Worship Service 10:45 a.m. --Sun Church School Monday 8:00 p.m.- Youth Bible Study MEDITATION: - The Lord is righteous in all His ways. The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon Him to all that call upon him in truth. Psa1,145:17-18 Everyone Welcome ,1111.11 Easter Seals help crippled children. Lakeview: Conservative Mennonite Church MERLIN BENDER, PASTOR SUNDAY, MARCH 21 1 1:00 a.m.-Worship Service 8:00 p.m. -Evening Service Wed. 8 p.m. Prayer and Bible Study Church History Unto the church of God...td then that are sanctified in / Christ Jesus, called to be saints,• with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord; Both theirs and ours. 1st Cor. 1:2 Everyone Welcome The �. ast Word by Ted Rowcliffe I'm a book nut, If I haven't got my nose in a newspaper, it's sure to be between the pages of a book. When dusting time comes around, the book shelves are a formidable barrier to good housekeeping. When moving a year ago, box after box of books strained the backs of the moving crew as they must have thought they were moving the New York Central Library. But I still love libraries and that's my topic for this week. No matter how many books I tend to accumulate through membership in two monthly book clubs and weekly forays into the musty shelves of used book stores across the coun- try, I still can't go past a public library without dropping in. I'd like to throw a bouquet to the local libraries. A feature on the newly renovated Hensall library a month or so ago indicated how even relatively small communities have exc- ellent library facilities through the county system. One night last week, while visiting the city of London, one of the loveliest in Canada in my opinion, I popped in to the central branch at Queen's and Wellington. Since I wanted a book of a very specialized nature, I thought I' d pick it up while in the city, rather than order it through the inter -library system from the local libraries. I knew I would need a card so I walked up to the desk, was greeted by a polite little clerk and asked for identific- ation with my signature on it. When she saw I was from Hur- on County, she informed me that I would have to pay a $10 fee to join since I didn't live in London or Middlesex county. I was flabbergasted. My first reaction was anger; then I realized there was no sense giving the clerk a hard time. Laughing at the ludicrous situation, I asked for the name of the library director. After sleeping on it until next morning, I called Mr. Bea - cock, library director, and politely told him what I thought of the situation. I was impressed by his seemingly genuine concern with the problems of one individual, particularly an individual his institution was not designated to serve. Mr. Beacock explained that the province allocated funds to libraries on an area basis. The province is carved up into sections and Huron is included in an area with Kitchener -Waterloo as its "resource centre." "But we're only 30 miles out of London," I explained. "Very few from this area would go to Kitchener if they wanted to find an advantage in a city not found here." Mr. Beacock agreed that it was ridiculous but could not be helped unless provincial regulations were changed. He also pointed out that the people of London were paying $10 per capita in taxes for library facilities while Huron residents were paying only $3. He indicated it wouldn 't be fair to have London residents paying through the nose to subsidize those from Huron. I suppose I could fork over $10 if I feel that strongly about it but the situation seems so awkward that it deserves cor= recting. I've already brought the matter to the attention of Huron -Middlesex MPP Jack Riddell and I intend to write more letters. If you feel the same way, why not write and tell me and I'll forward photocopies of your thoughts to those concerned. Emmanuel United Church BRUCE GUY, B.A., PASTOR Mrs. Milton Oesch, Organist SUNDAY, MARCH 21 10:00 a.m.-Sunday School Organizational Meeting Everyone Welcome 1 1:15 -Worship Service . Everyone Welcome St. Peter's Lutheran Church A.C. BLACKWELL, B.A.,B.D. PASTOR Mrs. Audrey Haberer, Organist SUNDAY, MARCH 21 10 a.m.- Worship Service 10;45 a.m.-Sun Church School WEDNESDAY EVENING 8 P.M. Lenten Services Everyone Welcome �aPa©Pn) di/ i -/A Bc-.4;z7o Published Each Wednesday 'By Huron -Middlesex Publishers Ltd. HERB TURKHEIM, EDITOR Second Class Mail Registration Number 1385 Member: +CNA Canadian Weekly. Newspapers Association Ontario Weekly Newspapers Association Subscription Rates: $6.00 per year in advance in Canada; $8.00 in United States and Foreign; single copies 20(t.