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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Times Advocate, 2005-10-12, Page 66 Exeter Times–Advocate Wednesday, October 5, 2005 Opinion Forum News Seniors' perspective Continued from page 5 Mabel loves to read, authors such as Janette Oke, John Grisham, and Pierre Berton. Personally she is involved in writing life stories, such as "Thomas Street history", and of course the "Stanlake Family history." Mabel loved to travel and Caven Presbyterian Church was also her passion. She was involved in many roles in the church that included teaching Sunday school, and by holding various church offices. She is sad, there is no more Sunday school at the church because she believes that this provides chil- dren with a good moral foundation for their lives. Her further contribution to society, was as a char- tered member of the South Huron Ladies Auxiliary of the Hurondale Institute, helped with Brownies, belonged to Home andSchool and the Rebekah Lodge. Mabel also has a variety of interests from baseball to movies such as "Patch Adams", "Sound of Music." Her favourite T.V. shows are "Jeopardy", "Millionaire", and "Monk." As a senior she is pleased with the various pro- grams provided, but she believes more affordable housing is needed. She has lived for many years and according to her, younger people need to be happier with what they have, for Mrs. Stanlake "Happiness comes from with- in. Thank you Mabel Stanlake for allowing me to pro- file you and your accomplishments. You have a great optimistic attitude for life and living. To me she is everybody's Aunt Mabel. My husband and I divorced over religious differ- ences. He thought he was God and I didn't. Some people are alive only because it's illegal to kill them. He who dies with the most toys is nonetheless dead. Consciousness: That annoying time between naps Being "over the hill" is much better than being under it A journey of a thousand miles begins with a cash advance The trouble with life is there's no background music. Year of the Veteran Dear Editor: 2005 has been designated "The Year of the Veteran". The Second World War ended 60 years ago, and most of the young soldiers who dashed ashore across the rocky beaches of Normandy were in their teens or early twenties. Now they are the white- haired vets in their eighties we see every November eleventh during Remembrance Day ceremonies across Canada. Their numbers are dwindling, but their story remains compelling. That story has been told with awesome realism in a book written by Clifford Chadderton, Chief Executive Officer of The War Amps. Chadderton was among the first to hit the beach on D -Day, and he led his men deep into enemy -held territory. His story is not about dates and battles, it's about the men he served with. Men like his Sergeant Major who died in Cliff's arms, and the Company padre who buried Canadians and Germans alike and insisted that tough combat soldiers join him in singing familiar childhood hymns. He tells of a Captain who couldn't take the thought of losing any more of his men, and was on the verge of asking to be sent back to Canada. Cliff asked him to spend a couple of days in a secret hideout behind the lines where he talked to others with the same feelings. Their mutual camaraderie caused many of them to reconsider and go back to their duties with renewed vigour. He tells us what it was like to be knocked senseless by an exploding shell, and then blown up by a German grenade and losing a leg. Chadderton carries the scars of thir- teen bullet wounds, and his book "Excuse Us Herr Schicklgruber" is impossible to put down. It's like reading "Saving Private Ryan", except that the stories are all absolutely true, and the characters are all absolutely Canadian. Younger generation readers have expressed their gratitude for being given the opportunity to read these stories, saying that they were never able to convince their fathers or uncles to tell them about their war -time exploits. The vets felt that no one would believe their incredible stories, and the memories were often too painful. The veterans themselves have praised the book because it tells their story accurately, vividly and without any braggadocio. One of the most amazing things about the book is the price! Chadderton has arranged for friends and supporters to help him underwrite the cost of publication, and this forty dollar book is available for just ten dollars. This is the kind of book that should be on the mandatory reading list of all schools. The brave young Canadians who beat the 'invincible' Nazi forces helped create the Canada we take for granted today. Chadderton's book, "Excuse Us! Herr Schicklgruber" is a must read for stu- dents of Canadian history, and anyone whose family members have served with the Canadian Armed Forces. It can be ordered by calling tollfree 1-800-250-3030 or by visiting www.waramps.ca. Sincerely, RAY STONE, Ottawa Community care workers impact health The week of Oct. 9-15 is Community Care Worker Week, a time to recognize the impact that community care workers have on the health of individuals and communi- ties. "Research demonstrates that home and community care programs help to reduce overall system costs, improve health outcomes; and provide care that people prefer in appropriate settings." (Canadian Home Care Association). Personal Support Workers (PSWs) assist clients of all ages and diagnoses to remain in their homes by providing a broad range of support services, such as personal care, home maintenance, meal preparation, caregiver relief and palliative care. Home and community care is vital to the success and sustainability of our health care system, and community care workers are dedicated to providing effective, high quality care to help clients remain where they most frequently wish to be - in their own homes. JOANN TODD, Manager Saint Elizabeth Health Care, Huron Service Delivery Centre Gasprices in Exeter Dear Editor, At the October 3rd. council meeting councillors addressed issues of price gouging. When discussing their letter of intent to other municipalities in Huron County regard- ing this municipality's dump, Deputy Mayor Urlin wondered if we should be allowing for market increases in the charges to these other municipalities for dumping and landfill sites. He had heard that London was talking of upping their rates to $85.00/tonne(Green Lane is now $70, South Huron $75). Mayor Morley discounted this idea as gouging. Council then went on to discuss ways to tackle the issue of gas prices in South Huron. Exeter prices have been at least 10% higher than neighbouring municipalities. Now at the time, I thought that South Huron council speaking to this issue would be a waste of time. But proving me Letters wrong, as of the drafting of this letter oil prices are dropping to drastically which means gas prices are sure to follow. Who Editor r knew our council has so much pull! In August, I submitted a comparison of building permit fees to this paper. In the example, South Huron was 425% higher than the City of Toronto for a comparable permit. In response to this Mayor Morley has stated that South Huron is "ahead of the curve" with regards to permit fees and other municipalities would follow. The exam- ples that I had used were from Municipalities that had updated their bylaws at the same time as South Huron. South Huron's rates seem to fit the definition of price gouging. The Municipality has done a study which has found our rates to be fair, based on the Building and Planning Department's costs. The cost of this study will also be included with these costs. So it seems that what needs to happen is a reduction in costs. Our building department is now qualified to evaluate the seismic reactions of a building thanks to extra training required by the new Ministry of Housing guidelines. Earthquakes are apparently a growing problem in South Huron. The Huron County Health Unit is currently delegated by South Huron to do our plumbing inspections. Plumbing isn't as complicated as seismic reactions. If our building department did the plumbing inspections instead of the Huron County Health Unit, as is the case in most other municipalities, the permit cost would be cut in half This change would then make South Huron's permit only 100% higher than a comparable one in Toronto. Keep up the good work with those gas prices. Yours truly, DEAN DucHnuME, Huron Contractors Inc., Registered Home Builder Daily issues of drug use and abuse by some of the students at SHDHS EXETER — One of the issues we face in schools every year is drug use and abuse by some of our students. From time to time, I am asked if SHDHS has a drug problem, and my answer is always that there are drugs in the community and that, yes, some of our students are involved in drug use. It is the same for every school in the province, probably for every school in North America. Unfortunately, illicit drugs are readily available in most communities, and students are targets for drug dealers. The fact that 800 students attend our school every day makes it inevitable there will be some drug use by our students, including some drug activity during the school day. If you read my column on a regular basis, you probably know I believe education and awareness are the best defences parents can have against drug use by their children. One of the best sources of accurate information about student drug use in Ontario is a study conducted every two years across the province: the Ontario Student Drug Use Survey (OSDUS). I encourage parents to check out this survey, but to be prepared also to be surprised by some of the data. While most parents are probably aware of the preva- lence of alcohol consumption and pot, some may be shocked by the percentage of students using harder drugs like crack cocaine and crystal meth. Parents need to be aware these drugs can be found in our communi- ties. The OSDUS survey is available on the Internet and you should be able to find it using any search engine. Sometimes percentages are a little misleading, howev- er, and I would suggest you work the percentages into actual numbers using our 800 students as a base number. So, if only five per cent are using a particular drug, think of them as 40 students rather than five per cent, and then try thinking of 40 students you may know, or think of any one student out of 20 you may know. The fig- ures often have more impact if you think of them in terms of real people. Once we are aware of the issue and its scope, we then need to develop a response to it. We are aware of some of the locations where drug use occurs in the community, and we have communicated this information to the police (they were aware of it already anyway). When we do encounter drug use by students, we report it to the police and then take the appropriate action as outlined in the Ontario Student Code of Conduct. That means a mandatory suspension for being under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and possible expulsion if a student is caught providing drugs or alcohol to another student. JEFF REAB PRINCI MESS URN PAL'S AGE Under the Code of Conduct, I am required to levy these consequences, but I see the school's main role in this issue as being one of education. Drug and alcohol awareness is something built into the health component of the physical education program and it is certainly a topic addressed in other subjects as well. But there is more we can do to promote education and awareness, such as bringing in guest speakers to talk to the students and to parents. Today (Oct. 12), the school, in conjunction with the School Council, is bringing in a speaker by the name of Paul Christie. Paul is a former drug addict who nearly destroyed his life through drug use which led to drug abuse and, in turn, to a life of crime. After 20 years of drug and alcohol use, he was able to get control of his life and checked into a drug rehab facility. He now spends his life talking to students about the mistakes he made, in an effort to encourage them to make good choices in life. Paul will speak to the student body during the last period today from 2:05 - 3:20 p.m. in the large gym. Parents are welcome to attend this assembly, but we will also hold a special session for parents tonight at 7 p.m. in the school library. We encourage you to attend this event to find out what you can do to help our kids make positive choices.